英语修辞学teachingmaterial1forSs.docVIP

English Rhetoric Chapter 1 Introduction Distinguish the shades of meanings of the word rhetoric in the following sentences. Tell whether they are used in their common sense or as a technical term. The emotional confrontation showed that the real problem of the Police Division and the community are being aggravated by persistent, divisive rhetoric. The Urban League intends to translate the symbols into substance and the rhetoric into relevance. Rhetoric at its best tries to teach the pupil to exploit the possibilities the language gives him. The trial was only a few hours old, but I was already annoyed. Rothblatt, the defense attorney, took off on a rhetorical binge about “this temple of justice” and the “hysteria of overwhelming publicity” that brought an objection from the prosecutors. As the clamor for basic skills continues to grow, it may be time for the fourth R—Rhetoric—to reenter the classroom. English teachers have almost abandoned the very name of rhetoric, and the classical tradition is now completely in our hands. Without rhetoric there is silence—and tyranny. For all the rhetorical smoke, the President and the Democrats are not that far apart on many other aspects of the program. In its best sense, rhetoric seeks to draw men together, attempts to establish agreement by willing consent, and tries to create an identity of purpose among them, to promote meaningful action. According to Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, the word “rhetoric” can be defined in various ways. On the positive side, it can refer to the art of expressive speech or discourse, including the study of principles and rules of composition formulated by ancient critics (as Aristotle and Quintilian) and interpreted by classical scholars for application, or the art and practice of writing or speaking as means of communication with persuasive or moving power; On the negative side, however, rhetoric may also mean artificial elegance of language—discourse