Reading Discussion #1



“The ability to find in a given situation, the available means of persuasion” –Aristotle

From the readings of last week, I have observed that ancient rhetoric was quite different than it is today.

Back in the day of Aristotle, facts were not an important part of rhetoric. Rather, the people relied more on invention. They valued the thoughts they gained through the culture of their community.

Now, people rely more on facts to shape and backup their argument. Facts seem to be more convincing.

The best rhetoric encompasses the styles of both the past and present forms of rhetoric. It is important to have an argument that has facts to back up opinion and different points the speaker is trying to make.

I was trying to think of the last time I had to use rhetoric and I decided it was when I was convincing my younger sister that her social decisions and education lapses will affect her future. I used examples of my life, my own opinions, and facts about having a college education to convince her to buck up and kick it in gear.

So basically we use rhetoric in everyday situations and it’s important to use many different tools to shape our argument.