Beware the use of rhetoric

Vincent J. Curtis

19 Sept 24

RE: Beware the power of rhetoric. Op-ed by Ronald Evans. The Hamilton Spectator 19 Sept 24

Aristotle wrote the book on rhetoric; he called it, oddly enough, the Art of Rhetoric.  Nowadays, we would call rhetoric “persuasive speech”, or more bluntly, “selling.” Ronald Evans defines rhetoric as “an emotional tool that can inspire audiences to right wrongs and to strive for a better world.”

One would hope that a retired school teacher could do a better job with his definitions, and would be solicitous of philosophical accuracy if he was going to hang an article on one.

As a work of rhetoric, his article, cautioning us of the power of rhetoric, was a failure. It was unpersuasive, and not, in fact, about rhetoric at all.  After its prefatory remarks, it slid into another tiresome, and tedious, “I hate Trump” diatribe.

Speaking of the power of rhetoric, the extreme rhetoric used against Trump, that he’s a racist, sexist, fascist, lying threat to democracy; by the Left might be in part responsible for the two attempts on his life, and perhaps the Left ought to tone it down.

Trump’s going to be the next President of the United States, and the Left can feel it coming.

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