Carl Roger's Empathetic: An Underappreciated Way Of Being?

Rhetoric is innate in nature because there is always some form of persuasion in communication. Rhetoric is essentially persuasion over value, which can be communicated through any type of discourse written, verbal, or nonverbal. If something is significant enough to be argued or even stated, it must have some degree of importance. Because rhetoric is everything, understanding how it influences us, helps us better understand how we work.
Carl Roger’s article “Empathetic: An Underappreciated Way of Being,” examines the rhetoric of emotions. On the surface level, rhetoric is simply persuasion, thus implying some degree of written or verbal communication. In reality, however, this is equally apparent in non-verbal situations because body language and tone creates an unspoken language that is potentially more powerful than the written and spoken word. Therefore, being empathetic towards others helps understand the underlying meaning behind their words. By “locat[ing] power in the person, not the expert,” the listener is able to understand others’ as they see themselves (Rogers 104). Furthermore, Rogers notes that frequently, the most powerful dialogue is within the unspoken word. He encourages others to listen for feelings rather than just for

There is even a degree of rhetoric in facts because in stating them, you are giving them significance. Furthermore, Richard Vatz argues “By the very fact of selecting certain elements and presenting them to the audience, their importance and pertinency to the discussion are implied” (Vatz 211). Moreover, a fact is simply known truth. While there may be truth outside of human knowledge, it is not yet a fact until it is unveiled. Therefore, if facts are not stated, they are not yet a fact. Choosing to present facts “endows these elements with a presence” (Vatz 211). Therefore, a fact that has not been reveled cannot be presented and therefore does not have a “presence” (Vatz