Persuasive Speaking

Persuasive Speaking • Mr. McGovern English 11 Harlem High School

Rhetoric • Derived from Ancient Greece with the philosopher Aristotle.

Rhetoric Continued • Is an ancient concept, a traditional label that represents the systematic study of human communication in the Western World. • Is the ART of persuading others in speaking or writing. It is language that is designed to persuade or impress.

History • Classical Rhetoric began some 500 years before the Common Era and ended some 500 years into the Common Era. • The beginning of the Classical Era is linked to the high point of Greek Civilization and Culture. • Addressed vital societal concerns of the Greeks and was developed to provide guidance to those who recognized the importance of persuasion.

History Continued • Aristotle defined three approaches to debating which are still used today. • Logos: Logic • Ethos: knowledge and credibility of the speaker or advocate. • Pathos: Emotions the most common emotions are

Types of Appeals 1. Logos-The use of logic. Facts and data 2. Ethos-The credibility or character of the speaker. Titles etc.

Types of Appeals • Pathos-The use of emotional appeals. The five most common appeals: • Anger • Friendship • Shame • Kindness/Pity • Envy

Elements Defined • An argument is a sentence which has a claim of fact, value, or policy. • Adherence: Is the informed consent of others • Evidence: research which is gathered to support a claim • Claim: Is a statement that you want others to accept or act upon a claim. Can either be a statement of Fact, Value, or Policy

Elements of Rhetoric • Restatement: Expressing the same ideas using different words • Anaphora: Repetition of the same word of group of words at the beginning of sucessive sentences • Rhetorical Questions: Questions asked for effect rather than answers

Elements Continued • Repetition: Restating an idea using the same words • Antithesis: Juxtaposition of strongly contrasting words ,images, or ideas • Parallelism: Repeating a grammatical structure • Exclamation: An emotional statement, often indicated in texts by an exclamation mark.

Questions of Fact • Fact (It is the way it is) • Assets that something is real and tangible and in fact does exist. • True/False • Might involve speculation • The speaker is an advocate • Can be researched, studied, and observed.

Questions of Fact • Examples • What laws are there enforcing motorbike safety? • How are animals treated in research facilities? • How many shows show real-life violence on television?

Questions of Value • Value (I Think) • Asserts the quality of a person, place, thing, or idea • Beliefs about good/bad, right/wrong, moral/immoral, proper/improper, fair/unfair. • Involves a judgment • Speaker’s justify their beliefs and set standards for evaluation

Question of Policy • Policy (Take Action) • A claim that tells someone or agency how to behave • Something should or should not be done • Will contain the words should or ought • The hardest of the claims to get one to accept

Logical Fallacies • Fallacies weaken or destroy the credibility of an argument. • Stereotyping: Ascribing characteristics to an entire group. • False Analogy: Making inaccurate comparisons between situations. • Loaded Words: Emotion filled words

Logical Fallacies Continued • Overgeneralization: Drawing conclusions about an entire group from a very small sample. • Oversimplification: Attributing only one cause when there are many. Attributing one cause effect relationship simply because one even follows another.

Persuasion Today • Is the process of motivating someone, through communication, to CHANGE a particular belief, attitude, or behavior. • These instances often create arguments

Rhetoric in the Media

Why do some say Rhetoric has died?

Persuasion and Advertising • Anger • Friendship • Fear • Shame • Kindness • Pity • Envy • Joy • love

Persuasive Speaking