Iago : An Aristotelian Rhetorician Essay

Plato once wrote that, “Rhetoric is the art of ruling the minds of men.” Rhetoric is the foundation of any solid argument, and any good speaker must learn to use it effectively. Creating a strong argument is a difficult task for any speaker, but Mark Antony’s eulogy for Caesar shows us that it can be done with the use of rhetorical strategies and arguments. Antony argues that Caesar was killed unfairly, and wants tells rome to revolt. He accomplishes this argument by using a combination of appeals to the audience's emotions, logic and facts, as well as reasoning and humility.

Aristotle’s idea of rhetoric is invention or the faculty of finding the best mean of persuasion in the particular case. Aristotle stated that there are two means of invention one is artistic and the other is nonartistic. The nonartisic form of invention is something that already exists prior to speech; something that can be applied. The artistic form of invention is made up of three proofs which are logos, pathos, and ethos. There are three types of proofs artistically created by a speaker, “those which demonstrated that a thing is so (logos), those which depend for their effectiveness or believability or the speaker (ethos), and those designed to sweat a listener’s feelings (pathos)” (Golden 68). The threefold analysis of invention by Aristotle’s

Rhetoric is an art form created before the reign of Gorgias, by Aristotle. As time progressed throughout the ages, Aristotle taught the art of rhetoric to his student Socrates, who eventually taught it to Plato. The art gradually adapted into the rhetoric we use today, providing the reason as to why Plato chooses to recreate the account of Socrates and Gorgias’ discussion. Plato shows us how Socrates’ knowledge of proper usage of rhetoric is vaster than that of Gorgias’. He helps us visualize the various ways he uses rhetoric, to provide the reason for his ability to use rhetoric better than the other Orators. This is illuminated by Socrates’ use of pathos, in his argument of pain and pleasure, the use of ethos in speaking about the comparison of medicine and gymnastics, and his use of logos in his debate on the body and soul. Plato places special consideration into choosing the topics he highlights in the story because of Socrates innate ability to refute these topics the way does.

According to Aristotle, certainly the most prominent rhetorical theorist in Ancient Greece and probably the most lasting rhetorical theorist in the Western tradition, an effective speech is made up of three “proofs”—logos, pathos, and ethos. Logos is the speech’s logic, pathos is the speaker’s appeal to the audience’s emotions, and ethos, finally, is “the most authoritative form of persuasion”—one that emerges

Rhetoric is the usage of words to persuade when writing or speaking. This was frequently used in William Shakespeare’s tragedy “Julius Caesar”, specifically in act 1 scene 2 by Cassius. By using his powers of manipulation with argumentation and persuasion, Cassius then tries to convince Brutus, a fellow Roman, to join in the conspiracy against Julius Caesar. Doing so, Cassius uses the rhetorical forms of pathos, logos, and the usage of rhetorical questions.

Cassius, Brutus, and Antony use rhetoric successfully in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, albeit each differently and for different causes. Each of these men uses his skills in rhetoric to convince each other and at some points the entire population of Rome to follow his beliefs. However, each of these men has different motivations to do so, as well as different characteristics and general worldviews.

Aristotle also believed that rhetoric can be forensic, epideictic, and deliberative, which is the second division of his work. The art of persuasion and a way of advising about things to come is the best definition of deliberate rhetoric. This pattern has been used throughout the film and it is another obvious appeal to make it more effective and achieve its goals. Aristotle argues that “for using deliberative rhetoric, the speaker needs to consider deterrents, inducements and the motives people have for avoiding or doing the actions in the question”

Julius Caesar, a play by William Shakespeare, has many instances of great rhetoric in the speech of its characters. Marc Antony, a main character and a pupil of the great Julius Caesar, has a speech that shows many uses of rhetorical appeal and devices. He is able to sway the citizens easily because of how strong his rhetoric is and how persuasive he is. Antony uses devices like dramatic irony, appeals (ethos, logos, pathos), and repetition to make the citizens believe in him and Caesar to disregard the conspirators argument.

In Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Brutus and Antony attempt to persuade the audience of their position on the death of Caesar. While Brutus explains that his death was necessary, Antony claims that Caesar was not deserving of his demise. However, though Brutus does have ample credibility and taps into the emotional link with his audience to some extent, he does not convey as powerful of an argument as Antony, as he fails to provide sufficient factual evidence. Antony, on the other hand, utilizes logical argumentation with solid evidence, creates an emotional connection with his audience, and maintains credibility in order to support his own argument. Through this, it can be seen that Antony’s use of rhetorical appeals and devices is superior

Along with Aristotle’s philosophical and scientific interests, he was a master of reasoning who proposed many theories still believed and used to this day. Over time, the philosophies he had taught were further expanded, hence Classical Rhetoric; he would write important, detailed texts about the basics of these notable ideas he fathered -- one of which is Rhetoric. In this text, composed of three books and total of sixty chapters, he introduces the rhetorical triangle. Each point in the triangle - ethos, pathos, and logos - holds a certain value in the context of communication, simultaneously influencing the others creating a trilateral relationship. The devices used in classical rhetoric are modern additions to the basic Aristotelian Rhetoric

Aristotle provides a foundation of rhetoric that is expounded upon by Plato, Bitzer and Burke’s theories in order to define rhetoric. Rhetoric includes factors such as language, situation, audience and ethics, which work together to persuade others of the common good.

In the play Othello, the Moor of Venice, Iago shows the catastrophic effects of rhetoric. He skillfully manipulates ethos, pathos, and logos to destroy the reputations and lives of many characters. Iago also shows mastery over the art of persuasion, which is known as rhetoric. Iago seeks revenge on Othello for appointing Michael Cassio to lieutenant. However, Iago’s plan will end in many lives lost.

By skillfully using rhetoric a speaker can persuade an audience to follow their beliefs by using emotions, logic and ethics. In the play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, a group of men create a conspiracy to kill Caesar on March fifteenth and take control of Rome. They succeeded in killing Caesar by stabbing him and to justify their treason they say Caesar was a threat to Rome. On the other hand a man named Marc Antony, who was a close friend of Caesar, needs to persuade the romans that the treason unjust. Antony succeeds by making a powerful speech at Caesar’s funeral. As a skilled speaker he used uses rhetorical devices such as ethos which shows credibility or character, logos which shows a logical approach to the

Rhetoric is an act of persuasion. Aristotle believes that the most persuasive technique is the truth. He taught others that rhetoric is to be used for persuasion and not manipulation and that it is to be done ethically. When using rhetoric for persuasion, it is important to recognize the rhetorical triangle. The rhetorical triangle includes the speaker, the subject, and the person being addressed. This triangle also demonstrates the three modes of persuasion, logos, ethos, and pathos. The author must embody all parts of the triangle. The speaker must exhibit ethos through their credibility. The subject must encompass logos by making logical sense. The appeal to the audience must use pathos to be persuasive. When these three parts come together, a persuasive speech can be delivered. Of the three sections of the rhetorical triangle, the audience is the most important. I will demonstrate my argument of the role of audience in the rhetorical triangle throughout the essay.

“Rhetoric, which is the use of language to inform or persuade, is very important in shaping public opinion. We are very easily fooled by language and how it is used by others.” Ray Comfort couldn’t have said it better. Rhetoric is a very powerful tool used in the English language. It has the power to conform people’s minds to fit the ideal society or influence their opinions about a certain subject. It is everywhere! It can be found in books, movies, commercials, debates, and speeches just to name a few. In Aristotle’s book, Rhetoric, he mentions all of the analytical strategies that are used when this literary art is practiced. These strategies will be applied to three different works of literature.