Aristotle and Rhetoric

Aristotle on Speaking and Rhetoric

Aristotle (384-322 B.C.E) was an ancient Greek philosopher and scientist. He is known as one of the greatest intellectual figures of all time. Aristotle covered most of the sciences and many of the arts. He has been called the father of modern science. The Rhetorical Triangle consists of Ethos, Pathos, and Logos. Like wise, the Canons of Rhetoric are broken down into five parts: Invention, arrangement, style, memory, and delivery. Aristotle’s work is thought to be the most important work on persuasion ever written. Rhetoric is using persuasion to effectively communicate in writing or speaking. In fact, we all use the Rhetorical Triangle and the Canons of Rhetoric in our everyday lives. Of the Rhetorical Triangle first is Ethos. Ethos is the appeal to the credibility of the speaker. For example, if I were to stand up and give a speech in front of the country, there would be a need for an introduction as to who I am. Otherwise, people would just sit and wonder why on earth I am talking to them and why on earth they should listen. There is a need to establish my credibility and tell everyone who I am. On the other hand, if President Obama were to get up and speak virtually nobody would question who he was. He has established credibility because he is the President of The United States. Whether you like him or not, you don’t have to question why you should listen to him. (At least most of the time) Whether you have to establish your credibility or you have some by a position you hold, the people in the audience will not hear your message without it. Pathos is the second part of the triangle. Pathos is the appeal to your emotions, values, and beliefs. For instance, if you hear the statistic that 75 percent of the people in Africa are starving, you might think wow, that is a lot of people and continue on your way. On the contrary, if you see images of people emaciated and suffering or little kids belly’s that are bloated, and people eating out of piles of garbage, you are now emotionally involved and are more apt to be moved to action. Similarly the same is true with all emotions. If you laugh, cry, or are made upset by something then you have succumb to Pathos. The last part of the Rhetorical Triangle is Logos. Logos is the appeal to reason. If your message is logical, includes facts and figures, if there is proof of what you are saying is true, and if it is real then you can successfully use logos to your benefit. Additionally, people throughout your speech are continually going to be asking themselves if what you are saying is true. You can also establish Logos by telling personal stories and cite your sources. The more real facts and detail you have the more believable you will be. To establish logos you can use analogies or metaphors. Many orators will use analogies or metaphors from the bible. Earlier I mentioned that 75 percent of Africans were starving. If my sources came from people magazine or an anti-government website then you probably couldn’t take it seriously. On the other hand, if my sources came from the Center for Disease Control or the World Health Organization, those are credible sources and you could believe them. Not only did I use facts and figures, but I also used credible sources. Indeed, using the Rhetorical Triangle in your speeches is a necessary component. Equally important would be is where to establish each part of the rhetorical triangle in a speech. Aristotle and Cicero (106-43 B.C.E.) broke down the process of preparing a speech into five parts. As described in “A Pocket Guide to Public Speaking, the canons of rhetoric are as follows: Invention, arrangement, style, memory, and delivery. First on the list is invention. Invention is deciding what you are going to say to the audience that you are presenting to. This is tied to the Logos appeal. Aristotle says that rhetoric is mostly invention, “Discovering the best available means of persuasion.” If I wanted to sell a weight loss product, I am probably going to find someone that has lost weight and has some before and after pictures. It would not make sense for me to have an overweight person be the spokesperson for my product. Therefore, having the right discussion in the right place is very important. Second is arrangement. Arrangement is the order of the speech. If you end your speech with a bunch a numbers and charts and graphs, you will probably have people confused and asking more questions. Like wise if you were to start with numbers, people wouldn’t know what you are talking about. If you can fit them into the middle of your speech, after your topic has been introduced then you can explain why you chose to use them. In “Silva Rhetoricae” (rhetoric.byu.edu) they show how “Cicero aligned certain rhetorical appeals with specific parts of oration.” They show the classical arrangement of oration as follows. 1. Introduction 2. Statement of Facts 3. Division 4. Proof 5. Refutation 6. Conclusion

This first step of arrangement is the introduction. It is explained that in the introduction you would need to establish authority or credibility. As mentioned earlier, to do this you would need to establish the Ethos appeal. In the next four areas (statement of facts, division, proof, refutation) you would use Logos. Again Logos would be where you would use charts and graphs or real life examples. In your conclusion you want to finish up with an appeal to emotion. Therefore, you would use Pathos. In the beginning you basically tell them who you are. Then, you tell them what you want and the value of it. Afterwards you sink them with a sob story. With the success of their cookie sales, I think the girl scouts nail the technique of arrangement. After arrangement comes Style. Style is how you present your ideas. You cannot underestimate the power of style. There is some who say that Martin Luther King didn’t actually write his infamous, “I have a dream” speech. That it was actually taken from some other peoples sermons. If that is true, he may still be credited with the style. There were 200,000 people that marched with him. Although maybe not all were black, he knew that they were all there supporting the civil rights movement, and that most of them were Christian. He used metaphors, biblical references and analogies, and delivered his speech like a sermon. He knew who he was speaking to, and he was so powerful that his speech continues to be analyzed and used as an example of a great speech. Martin Luther King’s speech illustrates the significance of style. Following Style is Memory. Memory is all about, practice, practice practice! In class we have learned how practicing in front of a mirror can make a difference. If you say it out loud you can work out the kinks, and the flow of your speech will be easier to listen to. Also if can take out the ums/uhs, and any other prohibitive practices that would take away from your message it will make it smoother as well. Furthermore if you have it memorized you will be better prepared for any questions that come your way. You won’t get side tracked and have to be searching through your note cards to find where you are at. Memorization is the key to having a smooth presentation. The Final Canon of Rhetoric is delivery. This pertains to how your speech is given. Think if Martin Luther King had stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and did not move or if he had delivered the speech in a monotone voice. Even today there could still be different schools for African American people, two wal-marts on every corner, and President Obama would not be our current president. Your delivery method may change for the audience that you are addressing. If you are going to give a talk 0n drugs to high school and elementary students your delivery method is going to have to change for each one to grasp their specific attention. Delivery will make or break your speech. As you go throughout your day you will realize that every newspaper article, magazine add, television commercial, billboard, talk radio, a speech or whatever the medium is, will be using one if not all three sides of the rhetorical triangle. As I learn about it I have found it to be truly enlightening and wish I would have known about it long ago. I have been in sales for almost my entire working life. There were so many times I can think of that had I just added another appeal I could have easily closed another deal. Now, as I own my own business I can use the Rhetorical Triangle along with the Canons of Rhetoric to be better organized in my thought process and to effectively communicate my ideas in my training manuals, negotiations, product development, and marketing materials. I feel like I have had a huge “aha” moment and I am excited to learn more about rhetoric and start applying it into my everyday life.

Works cited

www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/34560/Aristotle

http://sixminutes.dlugan.com/ethos-pathos-logos/

http://rhetoric.byu.edu/canons/Delivery.htm

Keith D. Miller Voice of Deliverance: The The language of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Its sources