Overview of Rhetoric

Here is an outline of the material we have covered (or have yet to cover) in English 1101:


Rhetoric is the study of the language or arguments. Arguments are composed of claims and their proofs. An argument can serve one of three purposes: to inform, to convince, or to move to action.

Arguments and time:

Arguments are either forensic (past), epideictic (present) or deliberative (future).

Arguments and perspective:

Arguments can focus on emotions, shared values, questions of character, or facts.

Arguments and purpose:

• Fact—Reporting what happened (articulating a central claim)
• Definition—Establishing core terms and values (claims + warrants)
• Evaluation—Assessment by Ranking (criteria--warrants)
• Cause/Effect—Understanding chains of events (reasons + warrants)
• Proposals—Understanding used to produce action/change (significance--warrants)

Structuring Arguments

All arguments begin with claims. Claims are assertions (statements) that are open to disagreement and that deal with topics of some significance. In structuring an argument, it is important to know how to order the claims you’re making. Is it best to give your biggest claim first or last? Knowing your audience helps you decide how to order your claims and your proof.

Classical Rhetoric

Enthymeme: Claim + Proof
Syllogism: Premise + Premise = Conclusion

Toulmin Rhetoric

Claim
Reason
Warrant
Evidence
Backing
Rebuttal
Conclusion

In classic rhetoric, the focus is on stating claims carefully and artfully. In Toulmin rhetoric, the focus is on understanding how to structure a discussion that shows how reasons and evidence support the claims fairly.

Evidence

In professional life, arguments generally aren’t complete unless they include carefully chosen evidence offered to support the claims being made. Evidence must be pertinent, accurate, authoritative and fairly represented. In presenting evidence, it is usually most effective to arrange evidence starting with least important and moving towards most important.

Evidence can be offered in several forms:

Scientific data
Expert opinions
Personal anecdotes

Arguments and audience

Knowing audience expectation

How much does audience know? Determines level of detail and complexity
What is audience expecting from you: “quick and dirty” or detailed analysis?
How receptive is audience to your case?
Receptive: deductive style (claim followed by proof)
Non-receptive: inductive style (proof followed by claim as conclusion)

Elements of Clear Writing

Writing is storytelling: Who are the characters? What are the actions? What is the order of events? All good stories have a beginning, a middle and an end.

Clear writing:

• well-researched and planned
• formally correct
• most actions expressed as verbs
• most characters expressed as subjects
• concise
• cohesive and coherent
• ordered to express proper emphasis
• judiciously revised