Premium Essay

Rhetoric In The Odyssey

Submitted By
Words 1003
Pages 5
What is rhetoric? Some say that it is the art of persuasive speech or the art of public speaking. Webster’s dictionary dictates rhetoric as, “ the art of speaking or writing effectively”. Throughout society speaking has always played an insurmountable role in our everyday lives, even before we put a literary term to define our actions. We do not see the practice of rhetoric until the 800s BC with the appearance of Homer, who was an author of multiple epic poems. Homer is most commonly known for, “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”, which both are compiled of multiple speeches within his poems. This allowed Homer to use rhetoric throughout his works. Rhetoric is used much more than just in works of literature. Education and government play large …show more content…
Philosophic rhetoric depended on discovering what was morally right in each argument, they did not just want to win. They wanted to win for something that was just. When you think of philosophers you will typically think of Plato and Socrates. Plato wrote the dialogues “Gorgias” and “Phaedrus”, which both criticized the sophists and emphasized why philosophic rhetoric is the more superior form of rhetoric. Plato and Socrates discuss what qualities you must possess to be a good rhetorician, “... he will never be able to speak about anything as he ought to speak unless he have a knowledge of philosophy.” Plato and Socrates believe that to be a true rhetorician or even just a good speaker in general you must have some background knowledge of philosophy. They continue to explain why you need a background in philosophy, because without philosophy you would not be able to decide what is morally right and wrong. “ ... he will make the same things seem good to the city at one time, and another time the reverse of good.” The two are explaining that rhetoricians, like sophists, who do not have a background in philosophy will argue both sides of an argument. Which means they do not care if what they are arguing is just or unjust. So, is it better to be able to always win an argument no matter what, or is it better to be able to win an argument with the knowledge of knowing what is just and

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Should It Be Embraced or Rejected?

...and has changed the way society gathers information, interacts with each other, and possibly the way society thinks. In analyzing Nicholas Carr’s “Is Google making Us Stoopid?” and Tyler Cowen’s “Three Tweets for the Web” the impression that readers were likely to be left with is very calculated. Both take positions on the issue of how the World Wide Web will affect the thought processes of the people who frequently use it; however, they are in complete opposition of each other in their viewpoints. When comparing “Is Google making Us Stoopid?” to the components of an argument, in Chapter 5 of Dialogues: An Argument Rhetoric and Reader by Gary Goshgarian and Kathleen Krueger, the essay is properly structured. The introduction is in place, although it does not clearly state the thesis or position of the essay. If the target audience is not familiar with “A Space Odyssey by Stanley Kubrick” the desired effect will likely be lost resulting in confusion from the very beginning. Mr. Carr’s position on the implications and effects on the human brain is stated in the title and again in the second paragraph and is in clear contempt of the alleged outcome. He proffers that the media, which most of society divulge in, not only supplies the train of thought but may actually sculpt the train of thought. The sources that he refers to are a mix between being verifiable while others are identified merely as friends and acquaintances. It is in the second paragraph when the intention...

Words: 1320 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

The Odyssey Rhetorical Analysis

...the saying is correct: more money, more problems. This is indeed the case with Strepsiades and his son, Pheidippides. Pheidippides became too greedy with his passion for racehorses, leading to the incurrence of a vast amount of debt for his father. Interestingly, Strepsiades does not want to have to pay back this enormous sum of money, so he seeks an alternative solution--rhetoric. Strepsiades is yearning for “The Thinkery” to be his savior, equipping him or his son with the necessary verbal tools to win the debt battle. However, all does not go according to plan. Strepsiades finds that the school does not work for him, and then successfully convinces his son to attend the school. Unbeknownst to Strepsiades, the plan to send his son would later prove to be an imprudent idea....

Words: 449 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Poetry

...Poetry (from the Greek poiesis — ποίησις — with a broad meaning of a "making", seen also in such terms as "hemopoiesis"; more narrowly, the making of poetry) is a form of literary art which uses aesthetic and rhythmic[1][2][3] qualities of language—such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre—to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, the prosaic ostensible meaning. Poetry has a long history, dating back to the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh. Early poems evolved from folk songs such as the Chinese Shijing, or from a need to retell oral epics, as with the Sanskrit Vedas, Zoroastrian Gathas, and the Homeric epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey. Ancient attempts to define poetry, such as Aristotle's Poetics, focused on the uses of speech in rhetoric, drama, song and comedy. Later attempts concentrated on features such as repetition, verse form and rhyme, and emphasized the aesthetics which distinguish poetry from more objectively-informative, prosaic forms of writing. From the mid-20th century, poetry has sometimes been more generally regarded as a fundamental creative act employing language. Poetry uses forms and conventions to suggest differential interpretation to words, or to evoke emotive responses. Devices such as assonance, alliteration, onomatopoeia and rhythm are sometimes used to achieve musical or incantatory effects. The use of ambiguity, symbolism, irony and other stylistic elements of poetic diction often leaves a poem open to multiple interpretations. Similarly...

Words: 384 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Poetry

...Poetry (from the Greek "poiesis" — "ποίησις" — with a broad meaning of a "making", seen also in such terms as "hemopoiesis"; more narrowly, the making of poetry) is a form of literary art which uses the aesthetic qualities of language to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, the prosaic ostensible meaning. POETRY Poetry has a long history, dating back to the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh. Early poems evolved from folk songs such as the Chinese Shijing, or from a need to retell oral epics, as with the Sanskrit Vedas, Zoroastrian Gathas, and the Homeric epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey. Ancient attempts to define poetry, such as Aristotle's Poetics, focused on the uses of speech in rhetoric, drama, song and comedy. Later attempts concentrated on features such as repetition, verse form and rhyme, and emphasized the aesthetics which distinguish poetry from more objectively-informative, prosaic forms of writing. From the mid-20th century, poetry has sometimes been more generally regarded as a fundamental creative act employing language. Poetry uses forms and conventions to suggest differential interpretation to words, or to evoke emotive responses. Devices such as assonance, alliteration, onomatopoeia and rhythm are sometimes used to achieve musical or incantatory effects. The use of ambiguity, symbolism, irony and other stylistic elements of poetic diction often leaves a poem open to multiple interpretations. Similarly, metaphor, simile and metonymy[1] create a resonance...

Words: 374 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Responsibility Of Women In Homer's Odyssey

...Philosophies (Women)- Women play either a motherly role or that of a seductress. They are weakened along with being lost without a guide and a support. An example would be Penelope, wife of Odysseus since she is a mother, but while Odysseus is gone, and when suitors come along, in a way she tempts them in terms of power (of the role of king) and as a woman, but she actually never gives in to any of the men. The purpose of women was mainly to lament the losses for their men and also persuading for their safety. Criticism- Homer had written the Odyssey with a bit of over-the-top reiteration, along with the missing component of a sense of unity. However, even when Odysseus wasn’t on a scene, the lines of the story still indicate that he is...

Words: 1924 - Pages: 8

Free Essay

Skahdahad

...Imaginative Journey Notes: The Stimulus Booklet 1.The road not taken: - Robert Frost o Imaginative Journeys allow us to explore future possibilities through speculation o Extended metaphor of the ‘road’ used to express both past and future decisions and actions. Frost describes using the imagination in times of indecision to explore the consequences of possible choices. – “…long I stood /And looked down one as far as I could” o Each of the four stanzas characterises one stage of this process of speculation and decision. The first has an optimistic tones created by colour connotations of ‘yellow wood’ and the suggestion of transience and movement through its flowing structure with the repetition of ‘and’ - ‘And sorry I could not travel both /And be one traveller, long I stood / And looked down one as far as I could’. o “Yellow wood also indicates that it may be the beginning of autumn, which could symbolise the sense of change and possibility at the turning of the season. o The second stanza suggests indecision as the composer chooses a path that ‘wanted wear’ and therefore carries less clear consequences. Taking the path that he knows or even imagines to understand less is a courageous decision, but the composer appears uncertain, using low modality language such as ‘perhaps’ and ‘really about the same’. o The third stanza expresses regret at the opportunities lost by choosing one path over the other. Imaginative journeys can conceive of multiple possibilities at once...

Words: 2045 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Biography of Homer

...Biography of Homer (?-? BC)  Beyond a few fragments of information, historians and classicists can only speculate about the life of the man who composed the Iliad and the Odyssey. The details are few. We do not even know the century in which he lived, and it is difficult to say with absolute certainty that the same poet composed both works. The Greeks attributed both of the epics to the same man, and we have little hard evidence that would make us doubt the ancient authorities, but uncertainty is a constant feature of scholarly work dealing with Homer's era of Greek history.  The Greeks hailed him as their greatest poet, as well as their first. Although the Greeks recognized other poets who composed in Greek before Homer, no texts from these earlier poets survived. Perhaps they were lost, or perhaps they were never written down‹Homer himself was probably on the cusp between the tradition of oral poetry and the new invention of written language. Texts of the Iliad and the Odyssey existed from at least the sixth century BC, and probably for a considerable span of time before that. These two great epic poems also had a life in performance: through the centuries, professional artists made their living by reciting Homer, performing the great epics for audiences that often know great parts of the poem by heart.  It is impossible to pin down with any certainty when Homer lived. Eratosthenes gives the traditional date of 1184 BC for the end of the Trojan War, the semi-mythical...

Words: 5074 - Pages: 21

Free Essay

Byron

...delighted in giving them a beau ideal likeness, but I only drew them as a painter or sanctuary would do, -- as they should be.’[1] (Medwin, Nov 1821- Mar 1822 (Cf. Ideality of Art)) p. 195 Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage was Lord George Gordon Byron’s first composition which he begun in 1809 and finally completed in 1818. The structure of the poem follows a young promising knight through his journey around Europe. The poem is autobiographical: Byron uses Childe Harold as a fictional figure to respond to, and comment on, life and experiences around Europe whilst Byron was undertaking his own ‘Tour’. The Grand Tour ‘became the fashionable way for young male aristocrats to complete an education whose foundation was classical Greek and Roman history, rhetoric, philosophy, and poetry.’[2] As a Romantic poet, in Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage Byron uses the depiction of nature as a way to express his opinions of place. Childe Harold is full of images and motifs which takes its reader on a journey, or a pilgrimage, of self-discovery and through foreign lands in the truly beautiful Byronic style. Politics have dominated the critical analysis of Childe Harold in the past, centred on the response of the Battle of Waterloo in Canto III and IV. Nonetheless, Byron’s presentation of the women in the text offers the reader a fresh understanding of the different countries visited by Childe Harold of which I shall concentrate on Spain, Greece and the City of Rome. Spain is described in Childe Harold’s...

Words: 3151 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

Ancient Greek and Rome Culture

...American Intercontinental University Topics in Cultural Studies: 215-08 Introduction to Humanities- Unit 1 Individual Project Deanna K. Wadley April 28, 2012 ABSTRACT This paper will develop a table to compare and contract both the ancient Greeks and Romans. It will include their culture, the type of governments they had, the level of trade, and economic conditions as well as the geographical areas they both thrived in. In addition the table will compare and contrast both civilizations art, architectural styles and accomplishments and their philosophical and religious beliefs. The table will also include visual representation to give readers a clearer picture of the past. Features of Greek and Roman Cultures Features | Ancient Greece | Roman Republic/Empire | | Timeline | 800 BCE – 500 BCE | 509 BCE - 27 BCE | | Government | * Made up of independent states called Polis, or city states. * Used sanctuaries to gather to share important cultural elements. * Citizens were land-owning males who had the right to vote and speak out in court (Sayre, 2010). | * Class structure composed of three tribes and consisted of two ranks; Patricians, and plebeians. * First form of representative government made up of a legislative and judicial branch * Developed elaborate code of law. (Sayre, 2010). | | Agriculture | * Farming * Animal husbandry * Beekeeping * Greeks had poor soil as they were located in rocky hills and mountains. Greece, 2001). | ...

Words: 730 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

#Popepular

...Plato and Play Taking Education Seriously in Ancient Greece Armand D’Angour In this article, the author outlines Plato’s notions of play in ancient Greek culture and shows how the philosopher’s views on play can be best appreciated against the background of shifting meanings and evaluations of play in classical Greece. Play—in various forms such as word play, ritual, and music—proved central to the development of Hellenic culture. In ancient Greece, play (paidia) was intrinsically associated with children (paides). However, both children and play assumed a greater cultural significance as literacy—and, consequently, education (paideia)— developed during the classical age of 500–300 BCE. Uniquely among ancient thinkers, Plato recognized that play influenced the way children developed as adults, and he proposed to regulate play for social ends. But Plato’s attitude toward play was ambivalent. Inclined to consider play an unworthy activity for adults, he seemed to suggest that intellectual play in some form, as demonstrated in the dialectical banter of Socrates, could provide a stimulus to understanding. Key words: education in ancient Greece; play and child development; play and education; play and Plato; Socratic dialectic Among various plausible misquotations that surface from time to time is a piece of popular wisdom attributed to Plato to the effect that “you can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.” It was quoted by Alaska Governor...

Words: 6335 - Pages: 26

Premium Essay

Modern Education vs Ancient Greece

...bearing the names of individuals to be exiled from the city, attest to basic literacy among Athenian citizens. They were taught gymnastics and physical fitness in wrestling school called palaistra for their preparation for war. Music was also a part of their education which consisted of lyric poetry and lyre playing. Music was included in both poetry and dance, with a strong emphasis on performance. Many boys would serve as chorus members in a Greek tragedy before they reached adulthood. The boys were also taught grammar which reading, writing, arithmetic, and the memorization of important poems, especially the works of Homer, were included. Greek boys, at an early age, were practiced to recite a poetry including all of Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey (Kirby, p.250). On the other...

Words: 1767 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Poetics of Aristotle

...THE POETICS OF ARISTOTLE A TRANSLATION BY S. H. BUTCHER A Penn State Electronic Classics Series Publication THE POETICS OF ARISTOTLE trans. S. H. Butcher is a publication of the Pennsylvania State Univer- sity. This Portable Document file is furnished free and without any charge of any kind. Any person using this document file, for any purpose, and in any way does so at his or her own risk. Neither the Pennsylvania State University nor Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, nor anyone associated with the Pennsylvania State University assumes any responsibility for the material contained within the document or for the file as an electronic transmission, in any way. THE POETICS OF ARISTOTLE trans. S. H. Butcher, the Pennsylvania State University, Electronic Classics Series, Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, Hazleton, PA 18201-1291 is a Portable Document File produced as part of an ongoing student publication project to bring classical works of literature, in English, to free and easy access of those wishing to make use of them. Cover Design: Jim Manis Copyright © 2000 The Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University is an equal opportunity university. THE POETICS OF ARISTOTLE THE POETICS OF ARISTOTLE Analysis of Contents A TRANSLATION BY S. H. BUTCHER I ‘Imitation’ the common principle of the Arts of Poetry. II The Objects of Imitation. III The Manner of Imitation. IV The Origin and Development of Poetry. V Definition of the Ludicrous, and a brief sketch of the rise...

Words: 15662 - Pages: 63

Free Essay

Brain Implants

...Kevin Wang Dr. Pearce Rhetoric 102 19 March 2010 The Brain Implant Dilemma In 2002, author M.T. Anderson wrote a novel called “Feed”, with a story envisioning a future where all human beings have implanted computer chips in their brains (Anderson 2002). It would be easy to dismiss such a bold concept as a product of fiction. However, many films and books with plots set in the future have successfully predicted the invention of many current technologies that simply did not exist at the time, including flat-screen TVs (Back to the Future II), unmanned aircraft (The Terminator), and video chatting (2001: A Space Odyssey). Suffice it to say, brain implants, as these embedded computer chips are called, are projected to become a reality. The past few years have already seen the integration of computer chip and organism, with millions of cats and dogs across the world injected with identifying microchip implants underneath their skin. Brain implants have also benefitted the medical field enormously, having in some cases cured blindness (Graham-Rowe 2007) and Parkinson’s disease (Harding 2009). However, developments indicate that brain implants for personal consumer use may see the light of day. IBM, the world’s largest chipmaker, recently announced their intent to research and develop brain implants capable of controlling gadgets via brain waves by 2020 (Hsu 2009). Toyota has already successfully demoed a wheelchair that can be controlled by its rider through brain waves...

Words: 2448 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Plato

...Plato • • • • • • When: 427-347 B.C. Where: Athens, Greece What: Philosophy Teacher: Socrates Student: Aristotle Major Theories to Discuss here: – The Forms: unchanging ideas or patterns of reality, which persist through all time and culture. – Dialectic: question/answer methodology used to discover error in beliefs. – Philosopher Kings filipspagnoli.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/plato3.jpg Plato’s Republic • Perhaps Plato’s best known work. • Form: dialogue • Characters: Socrates, Thrasymachus, Glaucon, Adeimantus • Topic: “What is Justice?” Note on Irony in the Dialogue • The Republic takes place in dialogue with the characters of the work. • But Plato seems to include an additional and unnamed character, namely, the reader of the work. The reader is quietly listening in on the dialogue, not unlike another individual (namely, the sophist Thrasymachus, who is also quietly listening in on the dialogue.) • Socratic wisdom is knowing that one does not know. Socrates often tells us that he does not have knowledge. He simply tests what others say when they say they have knowledge. • So when Socrates explains that he doesn’t really know anything about Justice, there’s a sense in which he’s telling us, the readers, that we don’t either, and that maybe we should listen in and even participate in the dialogue. • This same technique is used in other works by other authors. For example, when Sherlock Holmes insults...

Words: 3071 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

The Sat Essay

...The SAT Essay: Building a Repertoire of Examples The SAT essay is intended to measure your writing skills, not your knowledge of any specific subject. Therefore, the essay prompts given on the SAT must be fairly open-ended, so that anyone with a highschool education and life experiences common to all teenagers can respond to them. Most of them deal with basic philosophical, psychological, moral, or social issues. In my experience as a teacher, I’ve seen that the biggest challenge students face in writing the SAT essay is coming up with rich and relevant examples to discuss within the twenty-five minutes you’re given for the essay section. Quite often, students end up using examples that are inappropriate or superficial, or they don’t know enough about the examples they’ve chosen to write about them in detail. The way to combat this problem is to create your own repertoire of examples that you are well prepared to write detailed paragraphs about. Then, when you read the prompt you’re given on the day of the test, you can simply choose the examples from your repertoire that are most relevant to that particular topic. (Of course, this method isn’t fullproof; it may happen that you are unfortunate enough to get a topic that your prepared examples aren’t really appropriate for. If that’s the case, don’t try to force your examples to fit the topic. The process of coming up with these examples and writing several practice essays will also help you learn how to come up with new examples...

Words: 3449 - Pages: 14