Help Received:

Isocrates Readings

Charles Palandati

Why do you think natural talent was such an important consideration during this period?

Natural talent may have reflected the inability to move up in social classes. If you were born wealthy, chances are, you would be wealthy the rest of your life. Isocrates discusses the relationship between justice and wealth. He concludes that it is better to be poor and just, than wealthy and unjust. So it seems he did not think wealth correlated directly with justice. Isocrates stated “ability… is found in those who are well endowed by nature and have been schooled by practical experience.” This statement seems to contradict natural talent because Isocrates claims experience can teach people. Meanwhile, he makes other statements which support natural talent.

Where do you see conversations about natural talent in today’s rhetoric and context?

Being a born leader, or natural athlete are commonly said in today’s rhetoric. I am of the believe leaders are made. You must learn right from wrong, be able to understand situations, and make the warranted decision. Leadership is best learned through experience;, however, that does not mean you were born with it. It takes the ability to observe failures and commit to not making those same mistakes. On the topic of athletes, it can be a different story. In many sports, the most dominant player is usually bigger, stronger and faster. Those traits are often a product of good genetics. On the contrary, athletes must train their bodies, and learn the skills of their sport. For instance, in swimming, muscle is irrelevant if you don’t have good technique that promotes friction less posture in the water.

Help Received:

Readings on Canvas

Charles Palandati

How does your artifact function as a rhetoric of display?

The artifact I will be analyzing in the Encomium of Helen by Gorgias. First, it is essential to understand what is rhetoric of display? It is the use of language that utilizes eloquence. This eloquence is most obviously displayed in epidiectic rhetoric (which is praises or blames, deals with values, focuses on the present). According to Plato, this type of rhetoric is all for show with no real substance.Whether that is true is another discussion, the point is that rhetoric of display appeals to an audience by showing a way with words.

Encomium of Helen is epidiectic. One of the goals of the speech is to praise (remove blame from) Helen. However, Gorgias combines other types of rhetoric by logically explaining why Helen is not at fault for running off with Paris of Troy. That being said, the rhetoric of display is most obvious when Gorgias gives reasoning for the 4 possible scenarios. For example, Gorgias discusses the power of persuasion. While yes, he uses logic to make his point, he also uses eloquence when backing his major premise. Gorgias states “For if all men on all subjects had both memory of things past, and awareness of things present, and foreknowledge of the future, speech would not be similarly similar…” The different literary devices used creates a statement that is believable just based on the way it sounds. In such ways Gorgias employs epediectic rhetoric throughout, which help strengthen his writing, and more easily persuades others to buy his argument.

 

Annotations:

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Help Received:

Canvas Readings, Ch. 2 herrick

Charles Palandati

1. (1) Gorgias defines rhetoric as the tool to transfer knowledge. Furthermore, because knowledge is not concrete or easily passed on without ambiguity, it requires the ability to persuade using appeals to logic, emotion, credibility and even speaking extemporaneously. Additionally, such knowledge is only found at the surface level. Deep ideologies cannot be agreed upon because of the inability to persuade with logos, ethos, pathos, or Kairos in those circumstances. This idea embraces the sophist definition because all sophists used rhetoric for the purpose of either persuading the jury in the courtroom, or to persuade fellow peers in debating politics.

 

(2) My own definition from “What is rhetoric?” included three points. First, it includes all types of communication; second, rhetoric is effective in persuading people to agree with an argument; third, rhetoric is tailored to an audience, and considers current or applicable issues. While not mentioned, rhetoric also is used to identify a specific truth. All aspects of rhetoric with the exception of truth and confidence I agree with. Such truth requires confidence in order to effectively communicate it to an audience. Gorgias believes confidence is merely deception of the knowledge you don’t have. Therefore, because a rhetor is deceived there really is no truth in his or her argument. Instead, there is only opinion and rationale. Contrarily, I believe confidence is the belief an idea is right, and all others are wrong, unless persuaded otherwise. That confidence evokes a truth in the rhetor’s eyes. It is the job of the rhetor to transfer that truth to others through persuasion.

 

2. Gorgias demonstrates Dissoi logoi in the way he offers a counter argument. Additionally, he demonstrates that when defending a case, it is essential to explore all possible events. Rather than come to the conclusion that she was raped end of story, Gorgias gave four possible scenarios or reasons that defended Helen. Also, Gorgias constructed these arguments not because he thought Helen needed her name cleared, but to show others how to be an effective rhetor. Especially when he speaks about persuasion itself. He concludes that new opinions, speech written with art, and quick rebuttals, regardless of the truth can persuade others because people’s own opinions are insecure and subject to change.

Help Received: Herrick Ch. 2, Intro to Greek Rhetoric, online source for Encomium of Helen

Charles Palandati

HW: Cultural Essay Artifact

1. See Image.

2. Encomium of Helen by Gorgias.

Located online at http://myweb.fsu.edu/jjm09f/RhetoricSpring2012/Gorgias%20Encomium%20of%20Helen.pdf

Located in print at Ten Neglected Classics of Philosophy by Eric Schliesser

3. This is significant because Gorgias provides us with an example of how to make your argument sound persuading by using rhetorical devices, regardless of the logic behind your argument.

4. I am familiar with the story of Helen because I have seen the movie Troy. Of course, movies representation usually are not totally historically accurate; however, it is a story that interests me because it deals with causes of war.

Readings:

Notes of entire readings are posted.

Charlie Palandati

ERH-201WX

MAJ Garriott

5 September 2017

What is Rhetoric?

During the first class, I defined rhetoric as the means to communicate effectively by appealing to logic, emotions and credibility. Also, rhetoric can be oral or written. While this definition touches on some key points, it does not include all the essential elements. In order to develop a more complete definition, I explored The History and Theory of Rhetoric by James Herrick. Herrick presents the ideas of philosopher’s and authors, from the likes of Plato, Aristotle, John Locke, Friedrich Nietzshe, Richard Mckeon and more. For instance, Plato “condemns rhetoric as foul” (Herrick 1). Meanwhile, Mckeon believed “rhetoric is the study of how we organize and employ language effectively” (Herrick 3). At the same time, he offers his own ideas about rhetoric. For example, Herrick states the following: “I will be taking the position that rhetorical discourse is a particular type of communication”, rather than all communication (8).

As discussed in class, and after reading the text, there really is no agreed upon definition of rhetoric. Instead, there are essential elements that are repeated by those who discuss rhetoric. First, it includes all types of communication. In my original definition, I mentioned oral and written; however, this goes far beyond just those two broad categories. Herrick lists examples such as symbols, music, sports, and more to be mediums of rhetoric. Second, rhetoric is effective in persuading people to agree with an argument. Simply put, rhetorical discourse influences people to think, act, or behave in a certain way. Third, rhetoric is tailored to an audience, and considers current or applicable issues. Although Herrick discusses more elements of rhetoric, these are the three that stood out to me as the most agreed upon.

 

Works Cited

Herrick, James A. The History and Theory of Rhetoric. 5th ed., Pearson

Education, Inc., 2013.

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