Summary: The Art Of Rhetoric

Rhetoric is an art, an art in which its intention is to better the capability of speakers and writers to often persuade and educate their audience. By this, I do not mean in order to use rhetoric you have to be a teacher or a politician who is aiming to please a particular group of people. It can be anyone who is trying to make a point or send a message to the ones around them in many ways, not only words. Rhetoric has been around since the ancient times, and I’m sure almost everyone has used it at some point or another without even realizing it. Rhetoric has an effect on our everyday lives because rhetoric itself is something said or written or posted in order to get a response whether it be good or bad.
An example of rhetoric could be that

I have a poster of a beautiful nature scene like a rainforest or a tropical island and it would say something about embracing the beauty in nature. If someone was to come into my bedroom and see this hanging there they would get the idea that these places are always going to be in abundance for us to enjoy and look at, when really they are struggling to exist with climate changes, pollution, and endangered species. By having text about the beauty of nature, I am persuading the people who will see this poster to think of it in that way. Another example of how I use rhetoric in my daily life is when I am with my friends and we are trying to decide where to go to eat. I try to persuade my friend whom I know is trying to save money how they have some sort of deal on their menu right now in order to convince her. For my friend who I know loves coffee I could tell her how fresh and amazing the coffee is at the place that I want to go to, and how it isn’t as good at the competing restaurant. By using my words and tone of voice, I try and persuade them a certain way that I think they would be most inclined to.
Rhetoric is everywhere in our lives, from movies to billboards. Everything we see, read or hear is meant to affect us in one way or another. This can get very tricky though in places like the United States where we are considered a “melting pot” of different cultures. If someone who couldn’t read or speak English saw the nature poster in my room, they would have to assume what the poster might be saying and what the assume or pick up from it could be completely different than what it is really trying to say. Also, different cultures, and different people have a variety of opinions on things so hearing a statement from someone superior like a teacher or a parent could make two people feel two different ways. Rhetoric will always be prevalent in mine, and everyone’s daily lives because most things require and trigger a response to some degree.