Plato and Aristotle as depicted by Raphael in “The School of Athens.”
It is strange to think that how we communicate today can be traced back to the ideas and thoughts of two men who lived hundreds of years ago. Both ancient Greek philosophers Aristotle and Socrates formed the purposes, methods, and needs of the art of rhetoric that we utilize today, whether that be when writing an essay, publishing a journal, giving a speech, or even blogging. Understanding their thoughts and criteria for rhetoric can help us enhance our practice of the art of rhetoric.
Through Plato’s Phaedrus, depicting a thought-provoking conversation between Socrates and Phaedrus, and Aristotle’s Rhetoric, readers today can understand the certain qualities and necessities of writing and oratory that were prevalent in the fourth century. Plato’s text of Phaedrus demonstrates Socrates ideas and beliefs on rhetoric in the true philosophical style of questioning. Socrates and Phaedrus have a discussion about how one should use the art of rhetoric, touching on the importance of truth, of knowing one’s information, of persuasion, and of knowing one’s audience. Since one of Socrates examples of understanding one’s information is to know how to define the subject of which he or she is speaking of, I will try to define the term rhetoric so that you may be able to better understand: rhetoric is the art of discourse and of persuasion aiming to inform, convince, or inspire audiences.
Aristotle’s idea of rhetoric is very similar to that of Socrates. He emphasizes that rhetoric is used for persuasion, depends on the character of the speaker and the mind of the audience, and is characterized by the different purposes of speakers. He goes into much detail about how rhetoric is a way for a man to defend himself, even better than with his physical strength, as he says: “Again, it is absurd to hold that a man ought to be ashamed of being unable to defend himself with his limbs, but not of being unable to defend himself with speech and reason, when the use of rational speech is more distinctive of a human being than the use of his limbs.” This statement is certainly true of the power of speech. One’s ability to speak and write effectively is greatly more important than the physical strength or use of one’s limbs. If we think about all the great influential people of the past and present, we will realize that they do not use physical force as their tool of power, but they utilize their words and understanding of rhetoric to inspire and persuade others.
The importance of persuasion is one essential aspect of rhetoric that both Aristotle and Socrates touch on. Aristotle points out that one must be persuasive in rhetoric in order to put his or her audience in a certain frame of mind and to prove to them of the correctness and truth of their argument. It also depends on the speaker’s character, as he or she must appear credible to their audience. Socrates states that while truth is important to rhetoric, it is the ability of persuasion that is even more vital.
I agree with both of these ancient Greek philosophers that persuasion is an important part of rhetoric. If one does not use persuasion properly in their arguments, what exactly is the effectiveness of their writing or speech? Why bother if it is not going to motivate an audience or inspire new thoughts? I think that understanding Aristotle and Socrates’ purposes and methods of rhetoric is vital to know in order to write in a way that will successfully express a person’s thoughts and ideas. These ancient philosophers understood the significance of knowing how to communicate to others and make them critically think about their own ideas and thoughts. So it could be wise to take from their examples and use their methods of persuasion in rhetoric to enhance our own writing and speech.