Apology Of Palamedes And The Ethics Of Persuasion

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Recommended: Aristotle contribution to philosophy

History of Persuasion
Sophists were itinerate teachers of ancient Greece who taught the art of rhetoric claiming they could teach anyone to persuade. Sophists claimed that once their students had learned the art they could control the state and wealth (Waldman, 2013, para. 1). In Plato’s script, Gorgias, a well-known Sophist, and Socrates engage in a debate regarding the ethics of persuasion, including debating rhetoric dialog as an art (Gorgias).
Gorgias (483-375 B.C.E.) was an itinerant orator and philosopher, famous for his particular style of oration which was elaborate and rhyming seeming to mesmerize his listeners. Gorgias powers of persuasion were legendary ("Gorgias," 2008). Works attributed to Gorgias are On Nature, only a partial manuscript, which explores the nature of being, Apology of Palamedes, an important contribution to explanatory argument, Encomium on Helen, two slightly different copies exist, and Eptaphiosor (or Athenian Funeral) (Higgins, n.d., p. 1).
Gorgias did not seem to recognize truth as a universal principle, but something that applied in the moment. This belief about truth seems to support his own statement claiming that a properly delivered argument could change what the recipient believed, either for or against. Gorgias did maintain there was an ethical limitation on rhetoric argument,
“the duty of the same man both to declare what he should rightly and to refute what has been spoken falsely” (Higgins, n.d., p. 1).
The term sophists originally was the title for teachers and philosophers who charged their students a fee to learn their particular rhetoric (Duke, n.d.). Many sophists catered to the wealthy, becoming wealthy themselves. In the newly awakening democracy of Athens the claim many so...

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...are not the only careers utilizing rhetoric, although they may be the first to come to mind. Any career that requires convincing communication needs to be familiar with the methods of rhetoric.

References
. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.audioenglish.org/dictionary/sophistry.htm
Duke, G. (n.d.). The Sophists. Retrieved from http://www.iep.utm.edu/sophists/
Gorgias. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.philosophybasics.com/philosophers_gorgias.html
Higgins, C. F. (n.d.). Gorgias (483-375 B.C.E.). Retrieved from http://www.iep.utm.edu/gorgias/
Kenny, Sir, A. J. (2013). Aristotle. In An article about Aristotle. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/topic/34560/websites
Noah S. Sweat. (2013). In Wikipedia. Retrieved April 22, 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noah_S._Sweat
Waldman, T. (2013). Gorgias by Plato. In .Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia: .

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