“What is Rhetoric?”

A simple definition for the word “rhetoric” is the art of persuasive speaking and writing. Rhetoric can also be the ability for one to speak in a meaningful and persuasive way. In speech and writing, rhetoric is used to inform, persuade and even motivate its audience. The word can be traced back all the way before the birth of christ. During the early stages, philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle argued that rhetoric was the ability for one to persuade. As time progressed, various philosophies have been made on the definition of rhetoric. Broad definitions such as the study of human communication and the reasoning about probabilities, show how different the definition of rhetoric is between each person. Rhetoric is a difficult but very important term to grasp while writing or speaking. Words are very powerful and the ability for one to use them to persuade others can be a beneficial trait. Many world leaders use rhetoric to gain their countries support for a certain policy or global event. One of the most famous examples of rhetoric in literature is Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. This speech uses rhetoric to inform and persuade his audience.

Rhetoric can be intrepid in many different ways. Some believe that rhetoric is the art of enchanting the soul while others simply think it is one’s ability to speak properly. As you can see, rhetoric can be defined as a more spiritual and less tangible noun while others think it describes a person who is well spoken with manners. Even though these do make sense, the best definition of rhetoric is the art of persuasive speaking and writing. After researching the word and reading responses from various people of different ages, genders and races, it is evident that the majority of people define rhetoric as the art of persuasion. In conclusion the word rhetoric is one of the popular terms in speech and literature.