Chapter 8: Extrinsic Proofs + RT: Margret Fell & Thomas Wilson

Chapter 8- Extrinsic Proofs: Arguments Waiting to be Used

Aristotle divided proofs into two kinds:

·         Intrinsic- must be invented by a rhetor.

·         Extrinsic- don’t need to be invented by rhetor. They include realistic evidence.

Extrinsic Proofs in Ancient Rhetorics

·         Cicero defined them as testimony.

·         Not always reliable.

·         Written work needs to be interpreted and not taking for face value. Therefore, not always reliable.

·         Laws, are a good example of something that needs to be interpreted.

Testimony

·         Persons who have nothing to gain when testifying are more credible than those to profit by doing so. – Aristotle

·         Ancient Rhetor’s never took someone’s testimony for face value.

·         Community and Proximate Authories

Community Authorities - Peoples whose words or actions have earned them given respect within a community.

·         Ancient and recent witnesses.

Evaluating Community Authorities

·         Credibility and accuracy

·         Some scholars disagree with one another

Proximate Authorities – “statements by people who were physical present at an event”

·         Often thought to be a reliable source.

·         Evaluations of the ability of the source to testify about the event are taken into consideration.

·         The worth of the testimony has to pass several tests.

Introduction of Law

·         Is the law clearly written and consistent with itself?

·         Is it expedient and can it be enforced?

RT- Margret Fell

Argued that during the Renaissance, women’s sense of themselves changed for the better.

·         Social Condition- women to be educated and use their education.

·         Could use rhetorical knowledge in public.

·         Renaissance women felt more empowered.

o   Political and religious issues.

·         Quaker women spoke in public on social issues

Margret was a prolific writer (750).

Main point- women began speaking up in the church.


RT: Thomas Wilson

Wrote a few books

·         The Rule of Reason- talks about dialectic and logic. Much of the same ideas as Aristotle.

·         The Arte of Rhetorique- first American book to deal with invention, arrangement, style, memory, and delivery.