Rhetoric Definition

There are many ways to define the word rhetoric as it encompasses such a vast topic. The website defines it as "the study of effective speaking and writing. And the art of persuasion." One could also define it as the art of having a large impact on an audience. While these definitions do provide insight on the goals of rhetoric writing, they do not justify it since it is much more than a persuasive speech. In my opinion, rhetoric writing is the art of having a meaningful and powerful effect on an audience with persuasive techniques. Now this still doesn't cover all of the topics that rhetoric writing and speaking encompasses, as the website suggests, but I feel that it is a bit more accurate.

Our class discussions for the past two weeks really have a strong relation to rhetoric writing, as you may have assumed. When we opened up with the topic of academic writing we discussed how to write with a purpose and fulfill the purpose of the assignment. On top of that, our readings from They Say, I Say have all given us the tools to rhetoric writing. In fact, each chapter discusses the different areas of writing such as quotations, summarizing, and responses which are all essential tools to effective rhetoric writing. This is beneficial because if you are improperly summarizing a paper or misusing a good quotation, it will weaken your rhetoric argument and thus diminish its potential. As for today's discussion where we argued the importance of books which was much more significant than you may think. That discussion emphasized rhetoric speaking and how it is evident in everyday life.

After looking through the rhetoric website with its extensive details and examples I now have a strong understanding of what rhetoric is. As I mentioned before it has to do with the art of persuasion and understanding your audience. This is easier said done as rhetoric writing is quite complex and particular. I feel that the website was really helpful with highlighting the purpose of rhetoric writing and how it has evolved.  Two links from the website which I found to be insightful are the different types of persuasive appeals and the five canons of rhetoric. The persuasive appeals included in rhetoric writing, which I am familiar with, are logos, pathos and ethos which are respectively the appeal to reason, the appeal to emotion, and the persuasive appeal of one's character. These appeals, which were developed by Aristotle, divide the art of persuasion into categories which relatively define rhetoric writing. The five canons of rhetoric (invention, arrangement, style, memory and delivery) are the principles or guidelines for creating an argument. With the use of the five canons as well as the persuasive I believe that it will create a more legitimate and persuasive argument.

Although the site was detailed and provided strong tools for effective rhetoric writing I was still disappointed with the lack of examples that were available on the site. In order to really grasp the idea of rhetoric writing it is essential to have examples of correct and incorrect forms of rhetoric writing. That way we could identify our own writing and see how we could improve it by looking at the correct examples. Just as we discussed in class reading can only improve your writing so much. In order to grasp ideas and move forward you have to see examples of proper writing.

In conclusion, rhetoric writing is an art and one sentence can not justify how much it encompasses. I believe that rhetoric writing rhetoric writing is the art of having a meaningful and powerful effect on an audience with persuasive techniques but even then it doesn't grasp the whole idea. I am excited to move forward with this topic and see how much my writing improves over the next few weeks.


Burton, Gideon. "The Forest of Rhetoric." Silva Rhetoricae. Brigham Young University, n.d.Web. 03 Sept. 2015. <http://rhetoric.byu.edu>