...John Staine Heinrich Critical Book Review 2/13/14 LSTU 261 Rhetoric in its most simplistic form is language; more specifically rhetoric is persuasive language. Rhetoric is something that we use every day whether we know it or not, we are always using it. In Jay Heinrich’s strong argumentative book, “Thank you for Arguing,” he stresses the importance of rhetoric heavily. Heinrich argues that rhetoric is the key component to arguing and everyone can benefit from knowing how exactly to use rhetoric. His main intent is to show how rhetoric has shaped this country and how history is formed from its critical use. My view on this importance of rhetoric is at the same levels of Heinrich’s. I do believe that rhetoric is key to arguing and even beyond arguing, with getting by in the society in which we live in. I also agree with Heinrich’s idea on not arguing for a win but for a purpose, for a goal. Argument in the future tense will help bring strength to the situation itself. In the book Heinrich uses real life examples, ranging from his personal life, to television, to music, all the way through our history as a country. I noticed that Heinrich doesn’t really state the opposition of his argument, one could assume that if you do not use rhetoric effectively then you will not succeed in our society and that is it. I would also have like to see examples of rhetoric stripped down in a less complex form, for example someone using it that doesn’t really know the depth of it...
Words: 1250 - Pages: 5
...Dylan Weber Kim Priest English 101 Rhetorical Analysis During the beginning of this article, Tom Bissel has a back and forth comparison of his opinion about the video game Fallout 3, and telling his imaginary children, Kermit and Hussein, what he was doing the day that Barack Obama was elected to be our first African-American President of the United States. He tries to make an argument that even though there was a widely-known national, and even global, event that took place, he felt like playing the open world game of Fallout 3 was just more important. He goes on to say, “And so, my beloved Kermit, my dear little Hussein, at the moment America changed forever, your father was wandering an ICBM-denuded wasteland, nervously monitoring his radiation level, armed only with a baseball bat, a 10mm pistol, and six rounds of ammunition, in search of a vicious gang of mohawked marauders who were 100 percent bad news and totally had to be dealt with. Trust Daddy on this one”. This analogy of two events shows that beating a video game like Fallout 3 was just as important as watching the election of the 44th President of the United States. And while the excruciating detail of the game makes it seem like there was a lot of responsibility on his hands and he makes it sound like an assertion, it wouldn’t matter in the end, because we all know it was just a virtual world, and he missed out on reality. His anecdote was very detailed, however, and I’m sure if there was anyone who was skeptical...
Words: 1324 - Pages: 6
...English 472 Spring 2007 Herrick Notes Herrick, James. A History and Theory of Rhetoric: An Introduction. 3rd edition. New York: Allyn and Bacon, 2005 Chapter Eight Enlightenment Rhetorics • late 17th – early 18th century known as the Age of Enlightenment • periods marks a transition in western thought when the questioning of the received truths of Christian tradition, the elevation of rationality over other sources of truth, looking for solutions to social problems by means of the scientific method, and perceiving the universe as governed by inviolable physical laws • 18th century marks a period in which rhetorical theory turned away from its traditional concern for the invention of arguments and toward aesthetic matters of style and good delivery • change influenced by Ramus and Descartes who moved argument and proof out of the domain of rhetoric and into the domains of logic, dialectic, and math • a rhetorical theory that distinguished the discovery of knowledge through reasoning from the communication of that knowledge • thus invention is subordinate to concerns about style, taste, delivery and the imagination • rhetoric again moved to the forefront of education but less concerned with inventing/producing public discourse and more concerned with consuming public discourse Vico on Rhetoric and Human Thought • Giambattista Vico 1668-1744 • Italian philosopher, Lawyer, historian, student of ancient Rome, rhetorician ...
Words: 1865 - Pages: 8
...Eng 105-Comp 1 Proposal Essay November 1, 2013 Stimulation For my visual rhetoric I plan to use an electronic based visual due to my lack of ability to design and draw. I feel that the significance in my claim deserves a strong visual to go with it at which I would not be able to do justice with my drawing. My visual is going to use a very dark grey background to show emotion of depression or remorse. It will also shows bright colors that represent the flag of the United States as well as writing at which would define the purpose of the claim. The images in the visual argument are going to be positioned in a downward diagonal line with a larger image in the middle outlined by a black border to show importance. The smaller images give two different views one is in color as if they are watching it on the television and the other is absent of color and provides still space with a black and white photo of a famous person. The repetition although small is in the alignment and the size of the photos. The smaller photos are identical in size and our consumed by the main picture by the same amount of space. The color of the United States flag is going to convey patriotism and emotionally draw in the audience. The showing of the bold white lettering of the typography is going to show that there is a bold and strong allegiance to the United States flag. I feel that this statement will define the argument and can be presented in other ways and still convey the claim. The other...
Words: 378 - Pages: 2
...Institution Date The aim of every advertisement is to reach out to as many people as possible and relay the intended information to them. The hallmark of its effectiveness is only measurable through determination of its levels of persuasion. It is not very easy to appeal to a given mass and have the ability to change their beliefs, behaviors, intentions, motivations and attitudes. To do so, there are a number of factors, that different and distinct, that must be brought together intricately to create a complex appeal mechanism. To achieve the intended purpose within the set limits, an advertisement or campaign must employ the different modes of persuasion that are ethical strategies used for rhetorical appeal. These strategies are categorized rhetoric devices that classify the appeal that an advertisement might have on the audience. They are; pathos, logos and ethos. Pathos is an appeal on the emotions of an audience. It is responsible for eliciting sympathy and empathy from the target audience. Logos is the logical appeal that an advertisement might have on the audience. It is the aspect that deals with facts and figures. Ethos is particularly concerned with the authority the proposers of a given campaign have on the given field. The qualifications that a creator or an advertiser may have with regard to the content of their advertisement will definitely influence the audience’s ability to relate with the advert. In 2007, a UK charitable organization that offers extensive treatment...
Words: 911 - Pages: 4
...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...
Words: 1003 - Pages: 5
...I think the goal that the speaker wants to deliver is being the truth of what you are and what you actually believe. The audience should be everyone no matter you are still teenagers or you are adults. She used the comic as an example to express her feeling, her emotions. She also shared her own life story in order to get the attention of the audiences to make the topic clear, to help the audiences understand the main point, and to encourage the audiences to be what they are, be truth to the life. B. My definition of persuasive of rhetoric is how to make the topic clear, easy to understand and some examples or some evidences to prove your words. First of all, in order to make my audiences understand what I am going to deliver, I should...
Words: 314 - Pages: 2
...‘Got Milk?’ In 1993, the sales of milk are falling out as Americans switched to other drinks. The California Milk Processor Board launched the ‘Got Milk?’ campaign created by the agency Goodby Silverstein & Partners to promote to all people of all ages to drink more milk. ‘Got Milk?’ is a very influential advertising campaign that has gained over the years and continues to provide awareness for nutritional benefits of milk (Holt). The ads always use familiar faces to promote their products. The public is more likely to spend money to something they believe that they are trustworthy. An example of this ad is from Sports Illustrated magazine September 1999 issue featuring tennis stars and sisters Venus and Serena Williams. Famous for their colorful beaded braids and on-court success, these athletes have paired up off court with a milk mustache to encourage both young and adults especially those who lead active lifestyles to drink milk and get all the health benefits from it. The ethical appeal in this ad is very noticeable from the moment you look at it. “The ‘Got Milk?’ campaign is one of the most recognized and respected advertising campaigns, having earned a place in advertising history,” says milkdelivers.org. The ‘Got Milk?’ campaign ad has increased the production and consumption of milk products in California. A company that is known for its success has been around for years and still going means that their credibility is unquestionable. This may be one of the reasons...
Words: 672 - Pages: 3
...The Riot Grrrls use rhetoric as the power to persuade their audience to stand up against the abuse that people face in their daily bases by connecting with them. America has always struggled with the problem of racism. However, the problem that we currently see, such as “Make America great again” Another problem that America and the rest of the world are dealing with is feminism....
Words: 1017 - Pages: 5
...The Rhetoric Rhetoric is the study of effective speaking and writing. (Rhetoricae, n.d.) Ideas of Rhetoric have been used for ages throughout history, but the philosopher, Aristotle was the one who discovered the three categories of the means of persuasion; ethos, pathos and logos in his work Rhetoric. (Rapp, 2002) According to Aristotle, ethos is the credibility. Using people who are familiar or already respected adds credibility to what the persuader is saying. Oftentimes companies will use celebrities to endorse their products, and this is because of ethos. Even if the product is new and the audience has no personal experiences with it, they are familiar with the celebrity, and that gives the product credibility. (Henning, 1998) The second...
Words: 285 - Pages: 2
...To properly display the art of persuasion Aristotle instructs us on the importance of understanding Rhetoric and Dialectic. Rhetoric, which is the performance or how you articulate your side and Dialectic, which is the argument you are trying to convey. One must make sure when disputing their thesis that they make sure to present it in a way that is alluring and worth listening to or reading. If you are trying to gain the understanding from a bunch of enraged people first you would want to look at what condition these people are in. Next you would investigate who gets these people angry, and lastly why they get pissed off. Using all this information you can properly determine the nature of rhetoric that would work best in your favor. Dialectic...
Words: 265 - Pages: 2
...Stephen Mailloux’s (1995, ed) discussion of “Sophistry and Rhetorical pragmatism” (pp1-30) and West and Turner’s (2010, pp.312-327) discussion of “Rhetoric”. This essay is a review of Stephen Mailloux’s discussion of Sophistry and Rhetorical pragmatism (Mailloux, 1995) and West and Turner’s discussion of Rhetoric (West & Turner, 2010). The writings in question discuss the origins and evolution of Rhetoric, with Mailloux introduce a historical and philosophical criticism of “sophistic Rhetoric as applied in the modern American context” (for example, neopragmatism and poststructuralism), and evaluated in the rest of the book, whilst West and Turner enlighten the reader about the heurism and globalism of Aristotle’s Rhetorical theory with a focus on the discipline of public speaking. Mailloux introduces sophistic Rhetoric as founded on the pragmatic doctrine that “Man is the measure of all things: of things which are, that they are, and of things which are not, that they are not”, a phrase attributed to the Sophist Protagoras (Patrick, 2006). Others Sophists of note include Gorgias, Prodicus, Hippias and Thrasymachus – quoted in Plato’s Republic as saying “… ‘Just’ or ‘right’ means nothing but what is to the interest of the stronger party” (Plato & Lane, 2007)). West and Turner’s account of the Rhetoric show that the first teachers of Rhetoric were the "Sophists”, who were nomadic teachers of public speaking that were respected for their intellect and subsequently paid highly for their...
Words: 2288 - Pages: 10
...Visual Rhetoric While this organization succeeds in many ways with it rhetoric, it fails to succeed with its visual rhetoric. Visual rhetoric is supposed to “solidify and make more concrete ideographs meanings and help the rhetor connect or affirm their ideologies” according to chapter 3 supplemental notes. However, the visual images on the website and brochures fail to do much talking at all. They are rather plain with mostly pictures of women smiling. So instead of using the images purposely and showing things they have done or accomplishments that women and women of color have achieved to help support their argument they put minimal effort into the visual rhetoric making it useless to their argument. It would be effective for them to show...
Words: 814 - Pages: 4
...that brought to mind a police mug shot. Now, when others want us to do something or want to influence our attitudes or beliefs, they may use an argument. That is, they may offer a reason why we should or shouldn’t do or believe or not believe whatever it is. They might also use threats, bribery, or even more extreme measures. But the passage quoted above illustrates a technique that is used much more frequently: the persuasive power of words, or what we have called their rhetorical force or emotive meaning—their power to express and elicit images, feelings, and emotional associations. In the next few chapters, we examine some of the most common rhetorical techniques used to affect people’s attitudes, opinions, and behavior. Rhetoric refers to the study of persuasive writing. As we use the term, it denotes a broad category of linguistic techniques people use when their primary objective is to influence beliefs and attitudes and behavior. Is Rob Reiner “a perennial political activist millionaire”? Or is he an “untiring advocate of social reform willing to spend his considerable fortune for just causes”? The different...
Words: 1106 - Pages: 5
...plans to help the free peoples of the world. He wants to make sure that the nation lived free from poverty and united with liberty. Moreover, anaphora was a rhetorical device that turns out to be equally as effective to the nation as parallelism. President JFK enforced anaphora, or the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of a successive clause, into his speech to help whomever certain phrases address pay greater attention. Anaphora helps him be able to pledge help to those who are less fortunate.“Not because the Communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes but because it is right,” (Kennedy 9). With this use of rhetoric, Kennedy signifies that he will do “what is right, not what is popular,” (Wagoner 3). In paragraphs fifteen through eighteen , JFK begins each one with the phrase “let both sides…”. The use of this rhetoric once again allows him to define his points clearly.The repetition of this phrase is also filled with emotion throughout the entire speech. This use of anaphora shows a connection between Kennedy’s and Lincoln’s speeches. Abraham Lincoln used anaphora in “The Gettysburg Address” as one of his most effective rhetorical devices. After The Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln believed that the ground should not be altered in any way. “We cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow -- this ground,” (Lincoln). He wanted the people to believe that people cannot honor or disturb the the battle ground because they are unworthy of it. He...
Words: 1533 - Pages: 7
