Rhetoric

Introduction

Aristotle defines rhetoric as the power of discovering, in each case, the available means of persuasion. He distinguishes three modes of persuasion, the character of the speaker, the emotions of the audience and the argument itself, and analyses the three kinds of oratory: political, forensic and ceremonial. His careful portraits of anger, fear, pity and other emotions are among the earliest psychology we have, and his discussion of style and metaphor shaped the teaching of writing for two thousand years. Public speaking, legal advocacy and advertising still use the concepts this book laid down.