top of page
The Platonists
The Sophists

Epistemology --> truth is relative, created by humans

 

Love rhetoric; it is necessary for citizens to function in a political society

 

Rhetoric is: the source of knowledge

 

School of thought responding to the time period's common ideas about mythology and mysticism

Epistemology --> truth is absolute, coming from the noumenal world

 

Wary of rhetoric; only appropriate when used ethically

 

Rhetoric is: a way to create false truths

 

School of thought responding to Sophistic ideas of relative truth

Epistemology --> truth is grounded in scientific observation, sensory experiences

 

See value of rhetoric; persuasion necessary when communicating

 

Rhetoric is: the counterpart to dialectic, used to share observations

 

School of thought responding to Platonic ideas of the noumenal world and Sophistic ideas of humans as the source of knowledge

The Aristotilians

Comparing the Classics:

Truth, Knowledge, and Rhetoric

according to the Sophists, Platonists, and Aristotilians

The most important thing to remember about rhetoric is that is shaped by epistemology - in other words, your idea of how knowledge is created affects how you view rhetoric. As we've learned, the Athenian schools of thought have conflicting beliefs about the origin of truth, so their ideas about rhetoric also differ. For every school of thought established, another is established in response; rhetoric as a discipline is still evolving today, responding to the classic ideas of the Greeks and other subsequent schools of thought.

 

The study of rhetoric is a journey that began a very long time ago and will never end, as humans will always have a need for persuasive communication skills. Hopefully this brief introduction has answered some questions you may have had concerning rhetoric (such as its basic definition), but do not worry if the concept still seems overwhelming or confusing. As first-year EWM students, you will spend the next several years learning more about the elements of communication and the rest of your life developing your own persuasive skills.

 

bottom of page