Exam 4: Aristotle on Rhetoric

Provide the term for the following definitions: -A method of reasoning from common opinions, directed by established principles of reasoning to probable conclusions.

Provide the term for the following definitions: -The Greek term for making an argument of defense, one of two functions of forensic oratory.

Provide the term for the following definitions: -The study of the psychology of emotion, one of Aristotle's three artistic proofs.

What does Aristotle mean by "artistic proofs" (entechnoi pisteis)?

Provide the term for the following definitions: -Intelligence or good sense, discussed as one component of ethos.

________________ was the artistic proof that Aristotle says dealt with rationality, and studied the arguments employed in decision-making.

Aristotle believed that delivery was the most important aspect of rhetoric, and that stylized speaking was the most powerful tool to persuade audiences.

Central to Aristotle's treatment of rhetoric is the type of argument called the ________________. Literally translated as something like, "grasped internally," this type of argument is a rhetorical syllogism based on a premise shared by a speaker and the audience.

One of the reasons Aristotle gives for rhetoric's usefulness is, "We must be able to employ persuasion on opposite sides of a question … in order that we may see clearly what the facts are." What Sophistic principle does this connect with?

For what reasons is rhetoric useful, according to Aristotle?

Aristotle defined rhetoric in two different ways in the opening pages of his Rhetoric. Provide these two definitions.

Aristotle showed hesitancy to classify rhetoric and dialectic as exactly like other technai. What distinctive type of technai does he classify them as?

In Gorgias, Plato argues that rhetoric is a knack, and not a techne or true art. In Rhetoric, Aristotle argues that rhetoric is a techne. Explain why Aristotle takes this position. If rhetoric is a true art, what does the art allow one to accomplish, and about what sorts of things does it instruct one?

Describe the courses someone might take in a modern university in order to learn the components of the art of rhetoric as Aristotle describes that art in the Rhetoric.

What are the three types of artistic proofs Aristotle identifies, and with what is each concerned?

What is your response to Aristotle's argument that studying rhetoric is useful for (a) defending the truth, (b) adapting complicated ideas to a large and untrained audience, (c) thinking through both sides of a case, and (d) self-defense? Are these still good reasons for studying the subject, or have things changed too much since Aristotle's day for these reasons still to hold? Is there any use of rhetoric that should be added to Aristotle's list?

Greeks during Aristotle's time did not make a sharp distinction between thinking and speaking, meaning that words almost always implied oral expression.

Which type of rhetorical oratory does Aristotle say is concerned with actions, is future oriented, deals with questions of the best uses of resources, and is presented in the legislature to form laws?

________________ was the artistic proof that Aristotle thought was essential for putting the audience in the right frame of mind and for affecting the judgment of audiences.

Provide the term for the following definitions: -The study of human character, one of the three artistic proofs.