Aristotle Rhetoric

Aristotle. Aristotle on Rhetoric. Trans. George Kennedy. New York: Oxford UP. 2007.

George Kennedy Introduction
“3. Forms of persuasion are either:
a. Non-artistic: direct evidence (facts, withnesses, documents, etc.) that the speaker uses but does not—or should not—invent; or
b. Artistic: logical arguments constructed by the speak, of two types;
i. Inductive argument, called paradigm, or example, drawing a particular conclusion from one or more parallels
ii. Deductive argument, called enthymeme, or rhetorical syllogism, drawing a conclusion from stated or implied premises.

4. In rhetoric the speaker or writer almost always deals with probabilities—what would have happened or can happen based on what happens for the most part in such situations.
This relates both to background and method. The background being just the basic forms of persuasion. The method referring to “or can happen based on w hat happens for the most part in such situations” which, I believe, is what O’keefe is doing with anticipatory guilt. Interesting.
“And further, it is clear that the opponents have no function except to show that something is or is not true or has happened or has not happened; whether it is important or trivial or just or unjust in so far as the lawmaker has not provided a definition, the juror should somehow decide himself and not learn from the opponents” (32). =Background & Method
Pistis=proof
“That rhetoric, therefore, does not belong to a single defined genus of subject but is like dialectic and that it is useful is clear—and that its function [ergon] is not to persuade but to see the available means of persuasion in each case, as is true also in all the other arts;” (36).
Which means it makes sense that it shows up in Communications and English, and that it is important across the board in the academy because all studies appear to use rhetoric of one sort or another for varying reasons. =Background
“As stated here, the actuality produced by the pontentiality of rhetoric is not the written or oral text of a speech, or even persuasion, but the art of “seeing” how persuasion may be affected” (37).
The art of rhetoric is in perception as much as in the acting of it.
Persuasion through proofs, character/credibility, through emotion, through logos. (39).
Enthymeme—a rhetorical syllogism
Syllogism—a deductive argument in dialectic consisting of major premise, minor premise, and conclusion.
Paradigm—introduction
“I call a rhetorical syllogism an enthymeme, a rhetorical induction a paradigm” (40). =B
“But there are “specifics” that come from the premises of each species and genus [of knowledge]; for example, in physics there are premises from which there is neither an enthymeme nor a syllogism applicable to ethics; and in ethics [there are] others not useful in physics” (45). =B
Every field can beneifit from rhetorical procedure, but rhetorical procedures do not benefit from every field.
“9.justice, courage, temperance, magnaminity, magnificence, and similar dispositions (for they are virtues of the soul) (62). =A
These are listed as what one needs for happiness. However; many of the men in his time and later were perfectly happy without being magnanimous or displaying justice. The treatment of different races, the female gender, etc. prove this. How come they never noticed? One is not magnanimous when one tells the other gender over and over what their shortcomings are as was done in the conduct books.
“30.And most of all, each category of people [values as a good]that to which their character is disposed; for example, those fond of victory [value something] if it will be a victory, those fond of honor if it will be an honor, those fond of money if there will be money, and others similarly” (64). =A
Do we value what our characters are disposed toward, or what we are told our characters are disposed toward? Men value pride, women value modesty, etc. because that is the way it was SUPPOSED to be, or because it was true?
“38. [In epideictic] one should also use many kinds of amplification for example, if the subject [of praise] is the only one or the first or one of a few who most has done something; for all these things are honorable” (81). =M (to define the methods of others).
So if not many people act in a manner, and you do, you should be praised?
“In this chapter Aristotle adopts the definition of pleasure as kinesin tina tes psyches, ‘a certain movement of the soul’” (87). =E
Affective rhetoric is a movement of the soul. Is this what Aristotle is referring to? Is this where the definition begins to find its place?
“Aristotle identified three artistic modes of persuasion, derived from presenting the character (ethos) of the speaker in a favorable light, awakening emotion (pathos) in the audience so as to induce them to make the judgment desired, and showing the probability of what is said by logical argument (logos) (111). =B
8.The emotions [pathe]are those things through which, by undergoing change, people come to differ in their judgments and which are accompanied by pain and pleasure, for example, anger, pity, fear and other such things as their opposites” (113). =B
Never any mention of guilt.
“3. Belittling [oligoria] is an actualization of opinion about what seems worthless (we think both good and bad things worth serious attention, also things that contributed to them, but whatever amounts to little or nothing we suppose worthless), and there are three species of belittling: contempts. . ., spite. . ., and insult. . .; =M & A
Aristotle is using these as ways to insight anger, but I’ve seen them used in conduct books, so does the anger come from belittling or from the guilt thrown at the person?
“Let the matters just discussed be regarded as understood, and let the virtue of style [lexeos aerie]be defined as “to be clear” [saphe](speech is a kind of sighn so if it does not make clear it will not perform its function)—and neither flat nor above the dignity of the subject, but appropriate [prepon] (197). =M
Composition in its infancy?
One thing becomes apparent after having read this. Aristotle had a huge hand in helping to develop and further rhetoric, composition, law, and philosophy.