Rhetoric And Its Impact On Politics

The topics that I am most interested is God and health. I am extremely passionate about my faith as well as maintaining a healthy lifestyle. It may seem like these two topics are on the opposite side of the planet, but they have more similarities than you may think. My favorite reading thus far in A Time Traveler's Guide to Rhetoric is “Allegory of the Cave” by Plato. This story reminds me of today’s society, as humans begin to see the significance of light we also discover the truth. Of course, this all relates to my Christian faith, in which we seek the truth of Jesus Christ, we become the light in a dull and dark world. The longest paper I ever had to write was last year in my AP English course in which I was required to do a semester long

Rhetoric is a significant part of our everyday lives. Whether it's convincing our friends to go to a concert on the weekend, to go to a certain place for lunch, or even convincing yourself to do something that you should but don't want to do. Rhetoric is all around us today. Billboard ads, television commercials, newspaper ads, political speeches, even news stories all try, to some degree, to sway our opinion or convince us to take some sort of action. If you take a step back to look and think about it, rhetoric, in all actuality, shapes our lives. Every day we have an array of options of things to do or things to buy. So every day, our opinion or actions are being influenced, however minutely, by rhetoric.

In 2004 the United States of America held a presidential election as it does every four years. Throughout the process, from primary to convention, from the debates to Election Day, both the candidates and the media relied on rhetoric to influence the thoughts of the electorate. Because of the close results of the 2000 election and the bitter court battle that followed, the rhetoric of the campaigns of both major candidates in 2004 was stronger and more focused than before. To show the uses of this rhetoric and its effects on the public through the media, several topics are discussed within. First, the language used by the candidates, followed by a discussion of the political conventions and a look at the

“…rhetoric offers a grander, metaphysical payoff: it jolts you into a fresh new perspective on the human condition. After it awakens you to the argument all around, the world will never seem the same.” (6)

The word rhetoric is a form of literature that is used when one is trying to be effective in speaking and writing. Most people will utilize rhetoric writing at the same time they are trying to write a persuasive essay and not even know it. Not only is it used to persuade but also to motivate the reader on a specific topic or subject. I believe its the most effective style of writing and speaking that there is. This brings me back about two years ago when I wanted a fast sports car for my 17th birthday. I knew it wasn't going to come easy since my parents were very aware of my poor driving habits. This is when I realized I was going to have to be rhetoric, so I did just that. First, I researched all the important safety features the car had.

Rhetoric is a course in which students are taught the values of persuasion. And yet, behind this course is the utmost power to corrupt the world, changing it into a world of our own policies. This power, even though seldom discussed, has lead to many intriguing discoveries. One such discovery is how people are able to shape the world they live in simply by choosing the right words. Therefore those who would want the world to be a better place must protect this power. If in the wrong hands this power could cause serious damage. Several authors have striven to protect rhetoric and its power. Few agree on the matter of defining rhetoric, but they know that they must protect rhetoric from dark souls. A single definition of rhetoric must maintain a simplistic nature while incorporating every aspect of rhetoric. However, I argue that rhetoric is a means of persuading audiences of a situation and a particular reality through language and personal appeal. In order to prove this definition I will discuss how rhetoric creates a situation, the shaping of a different reality, the audience, the use of language, and the personal appeal. Finally, I will demonstrate the absolute need for rhetoric.

The definition of rhetoric is quite ambiguous, with different definitions applying to various situations. Similarly, power has multiple types. Rhetoric and power affect me in my daily life in numerous ways, one being the relationship between my twelve year old younger sister and me. One of the definitions of rhetoric that is applicable to the situation between my sister and me is identified by Wayne C. Booth, and is described as the art of removing misunderstanding but also producing misunderstanding (p. 9). James Jasinski describes many types of power, one type being the ability to get people to do the bidding of other people (p. 443).

"You don 't get the chance to make America great by getting rid of everything that made America great,” Stated by Hillary Clinton during her campaign rally in St. Louis, Missouri to attack candidate Donald Trump from his previous diverse rhetoric. Political Rhetoric has been very popular in today’s society. Politics use this as a platform to criticize other candidates about important points that are essential to the United States and its citizens. Not only does others believe that political rhetoric is out of control but it is a negative form of art. During election time, the media and the internet are critical for candidates because it gives them easy access to the younger audience. Although social media is enormous in today’s society, this is the best way for young voters to make their voices heard. Scott Keeter a research analyst and exit poll analyst for NBS News stated that “Young voters have given the Democratic Party a majority of their votes, and for all three cycles they have been the party’s most supportive age group” (Keeter, 1). According to U.S. Census Bureau over the course of time the rate of younger voters “Dropped from 50.9% percent in 1964 to 38.0 percent in 2012” (U.S. Census Bureau, 2).However, the media continue to evolve with modern society. I believe that rhetoric such as visual political rhetoric helps the youth to get more involved with the political arguments while being educated and entertained at the same time.

It is one thing to sit across a table and make an eloquent case on what you have to offer and quite another to make the person sitting across you to move to your side, pick a pen and sign a contract.

Rhetoric, Plato says, is the art of ruling the minds of men. But in democracies it is too common to hide thought in words, to overlay it, to babble nonsense. The gleams and glitter of intellectual soap-and-water bubbles are mistaken for the rainbow-glories of genius. The worthless pyrites is continually mistaken for gold. Even intellect condescends to intellectual jugglery, balancing thoughts as a juggler balances pipes on his chin. In all Congresses we have the inexhaustible flow of babble, and Faction's clamorous knavery in discussion, until the divine power of speech, that privilege of man and great gift of God, is no better than the screech of parrots or the mimicry of monkeys. The mere talker, however fluent, is barren of deeds in the day of trial (Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma, 1872, p.

For defining this rhetoric, it brings in the ideologies over the course of years in foreign affairs, furthermore accelerated the amount of propaganda and political

“…we need to learn to write what is true and what needs saying even if the whole world is scandalized. We need to find in ourselves eventually the support which – perhaps for a long time – we must seek openly from others.” According to Elbow, our writing must depict sincerity and honesty, a reflection of who we really are. We must not hide facts, however much the world may be ready to receive what is false. Our writing must show things exactly as they are.

How Form Highlights Lack of Logic in Political Rhetoric “next to of course god america i,” a poem by E.E Cummings is a political speech written in the form of a sonnet. The last line of the poem, “He spoke. And drank rapidly a glass of water” signifies to the reader that the first thirteen lines of the poem which is in quotation marks is a speech given to an audience. The poem is filled with patriotic songs in the first and second quatrain that echo common political rhetoric. The lines of the poem demonstrate poor command of language, which contradicts the expectations for a political speech, which is expected to be intelligent and written or spoken in proper and formal language.

In a world of politics, many politicians are involved in negative campaigns and as a result healthy conversation among politicians often lead to a disaster. With the endless political news cycles, rhetoric is essential for politicians to deliver their speeches. Therefore, in this essay, the style and delivery of Bill Clinton’s speech at the Democratic National Convention will be examined. It will be using the three main appeals of Aristotle’s mode of persuasion, the five essential rhetoric elements and the classical canons to analysed the speech and evaluate its effectiveness all of which will contribute to its persuasive power to leave a memorable impression in the minds of the audience.

In today’s age, the use of persuasive rhetoric is everywhere. The most recognized use of rhetoric today is through political propaganda. Politics are confusing to many people and disliked by many more. The reason for this is because politics are often misleading. “Political speaking urges us either to do or not do something: one of these two courses is always taken by private counselors, as well as by men who address