Principal: Defintion

1. Principal: Defintion Week 1 ENG 1005: Writing about Social Justice

2. The point of the thesis: The point of the thesis, according to Corbett is to “put across” a specific idea or proposition (p. 31) How do we get others to accept the truth of our proposition though? Through the rhetorical appeals of logos, ethos, pathos, and kairos. Logos: appeal to reason Pathos: appeal to their emotions Ethos: the appeal of our character/credibility How and in what ways we put these appeals to affect depends on who we are communicating to and what we’re communicating about.

3. Deductive/Inductive Logic Because the Greeks believed that people are predisposed to ordering their lives based on reason, they saw rhetoric as an extension of classic logic: the science of human reasoning. Plato’s Dialogues are good examples of dialectic…how people naturally argue. Rhetoric is how we learn to persuade a group of people. In strict “logical terms: the the logician uses the syllogism and induction to reason but in rhetoric, we use the enthymeme and the example to reason with our audiences.

4. Definition In literary and scientific journals, we often find authors using masses of evidence or employing deductive reasoning to persuade us they are “right.” Before you can prove you’re right, you have to explain what you’re talking about, how it works, or what it is. Discourses that analyze or classify things are expository. Aristotle lays down in the Topica what an “essential definition” is: a man is a rational animal. The term “rational animal” designates man’s essence.

5. Testing definitions • One way to arrive at the “truth” of a proposition is to see if the proposition can be converted. • Can you interchange the subject and predicate terms without destroying the truth of the proposition? • “A man is a rational animal.” (Proposition A) = T • “A rational animal is a man.” (Converted)= T • [rationality belongs exclusively to man] • Man = rational animal and Rational animal = man • But… • “Man is a biped animal” (Prop A) = T • “A biped animal is a man” (Converted) = F • [Being a bi-pedis a characteristic of man, but it’s non-essential]

6. Genus and Differentiae • We put things to be defined into a genus or general class • Then give the differentia that distinguished that thing from every other thing that might also be in that class. • In example: animal is the genus; rational is the differentia • So: “An automobile is a vehicle that runs on four wheels.” • Vehicle=class • Differentia=runs on four wheels

7. In-Class Exercise I Go to an online dictionary Look up one terms relevant to the argumentative essay topic. Define the terms but note how (and if) they follow Aristotle’s pattern of general class/differentiae. Does your definition try to attain an essential definition? Why or why not? Be prepared to deconstruct these definitions in class.

8. In-Class Exercise II Select two opposing discourse communities interested in your subject matter. For example, if I was working on the “insanity plea”, I might choose psychologists and politics. Find examples of how these actors define the term. Write them down. How does the term shift in meaning depending on who is defining it? What kind of consequences or interesting insights does this suggest?

9. In-Class Exercise III: Synonyms Aristotle wasn’t a fan of synonyms, as he didn’t think the real definition could be rendered in anything but a phrase. Still, using the same key word we’ve been wrestling with come up with a synonym for it. In example, if you’re trying to convey the meaning of abortion, you might use the synonym “baby killing”, which carries vastly different rhetorical connotations (pathos anyone!?) than the synonym “embryonic expulsion.”

10. In-Class Exercise IV: Etymology The study of etymology can throw light on meaning and can serve as a mnemonic device. However, the original meaning of words can drift pretty far through time. Using the same term look up the etymological meaning of it. Use a reputable source like the Oxford English Dictionary. For example: police once meant in Greek, citizen. Can you draw interesting associations/conclusions from the history of the term you selected?

11. In-Class Exercise V: Definition through Description Giving examples is an age-old way to bring humans closer to definition agreement. The exemplum or anecdote was once a prominent way literary critics defined key literary terms/passages. Using the same key term write out a description or short anecdote/moral-of-the-story graph to describe/define the term. (Refer to page 36 for an example.)

12. Homework: Definition Based on all the examples and in-class assignments today, and on the three rules of definition (found on Pg. 37), using the key term with which we’ve worked today, set down a complete definition. Bring it to class on Thursday and be prepared to share.