Rhetoric, the classical art of persuasion, is all around us. Professional communicators, from sovereigns to salesmen, consciously exploit rhetorical techniques in their speeches and advertising slogans to win our support or simply sell us stuff. In fact, rhetorical structures are so integrated into the language of the western tradition that all of us use rhetoric every day, without even noticing. But could we learn to use it better?
Back to basics
The art of rhetoric has its roots in Athens in the 4th century BC, where constructing persuasive speeches was the key to power. It was there that the philosopher Aristotle wrote The Art of Rhetoric, a handbook that explains techniques for structuring a speech and persuading an audience. Athenian ideas about rhetoric then spread across the Roman world and continued to develop throughout Europe during the Middle Ages.
By the 16th century, when Shakespeare was at school, the study of rhetoric made up one third of the basic curriculum in English schools, along with grammar and logic. It was seen as fundamental that young people (young men, to be more accurate) learnt how to construct powerful arguments and find errors in their opponent’s argument. Today, in the era of digital mass media and fake news, wouldn’t it be great for kids to learn those skills in school?
Empty words?
But educational fashions change and rhetoric has got itself a bit of a bad name. Politicians are often accused of “talking empty rhetoric,” which means using impressive-sounding words that don’t lead to action. Barack Obama was an extremely skilled speech-maker, using exactly the kind of rhetorical techniques that Aristotle described. But while many praised Obama for his elegant oratory, others tried to depict him as a leader who was better at words than action.
Ethos, logos, pathos
There are numerous rhetorical tricks that we can use to make our arguments more effective and they don’t have to be complicated. One technique is to ask a question that doesn’t require an answer. What could be simpler than adding a rhetorical question? See, that was one right there! But more fundamental than these devices are what Aristotle called the three appeals: ethos, logos and pathos.
Ethos is an appeal to character. As a speaker, you must establish your credentials, make it clear why you are worth listening to, and make a connection with your audience. Next comes logos, an appeal to facts. There must be hard evidence to support your argument. And finally pathos, the appeal to emotion. The audience is more likely to act in the way you want if you can move them emotionally.
the stomach of a king
Using rhetoric effectively might be an everyday matter of persuading your boss to extend a deadline or persuading your son to take out the rubbish. But in some cases, using rhetoric effectively is a matter of survival. Queen Elizabeth I of England was renowned for her skilled use of rhetoric. In 1588, as the Spanish Armada was approaching the English coast with the purpose of invading the British Isles, Elizabeth visited her troops and made a speech that was dripping inrhetorical devices. The most famous line is a powerful appeal to ethos:
“I know I have the body but of a weak and FEEBLE woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too.”
The English troops went out and defeated the Spanish Armada in what is now seen as one of England’s greatest military achievements. Elizabeth’s popularity soared.
grandmother queen
Over four centuries later, after the tragic death of Diana Princess of Wales in 1997, Queen Elizabeth II also reached for rhetoric as the tide of public opinion turned against the royal family. Like her predecessor Elizabeth I, she made a speech that started with an appeal to ethos. “So what I say to you now, as your Queen and as a grandmother, I say from my heart.” She had established her credentials and found common ground with her audience. It was hard for even the anti-royalists to argue with that.
So, rhetoric is everywhere. Its persuasive magic can be virtuous in the right hands and deceptive in the wrong ones. If we don’t use it effectively, someone else will...
Fake news is old
A suspicion of rhetoric is nothing new. Although Aristotle was one of the fathers of rhetoric and believed that true rhetoric was virtuous, his own teacher Plato was extremely sceptical. In one of his Dialogues, Plato depicts Socrates beating a rhetorician called Gorgias in an argument about the virtue (or not) of rhetoric. Gorgias was from the group of philosophers known as Sophists, from where we get the negative word ‘sophistry’, meaning “the use of clever but false arguments, especially with the intention of deceiving.”