Chapter1 Studying Rhetoric

课题Chapter 1 An Introduction to Rhetoric目的要求 A fundamental knowledge of rhetoric教学重点1.The definition of rhetoric2. The contents of rhetoric3. The relationship of rhetoric and grammar教学难点The contents of rhetoricThe relationship of rhetoric and grammar教学课时2教学方法Question, explanation and discussion教学内容与步骤1.What is rhetoric?American linguists Brooks and Woolen in their book Modern Rhetoric said that rhetoric is the art of using language effectively.（修辞学是有效使用语言的艺术）2.Origin of modern rhetoric1)The word rhetoric means “speaking”in such European languages ad Greek, Latin, French, Spanish and Italian.Rhetoric originated in speaking. Aristotle, in the 4th centuary BC, first defined rhetoric as the art of persuasion. In Athens, the center of western civilization, great orators, by exercising their rhetoric, gained following and support, and eventually, political power.2) With the development of the modern printing industry in the 19thcentury, rhetoric came to be understood as the ability to write or speak well in ornate, showy language.3) At present, however, with the quickened tempo of life, the increased stress on efficiency and efficacy, and the ascendence of the idea that languages are means of communication, more and more people have come to regard rhetoric ad the art of effective communication. Furthermore, rhetoric tends to be connected more with writing than speech, and more with prose writing than with verse.3.Why should we learn rhetoric?There is a phenomenon in Chinese college students: in reading, the students are able to analyze sentences into their grammatical components, but they have difficulty in appreciating a rhetorically effective sentence or passage. In writing compositions, while they are able to make sentences which are grammatically correct, they have great difficulty in composing sentences or paragraphs which are effective rhetorically and stylistically.4.Contents of modern rhetoric1) There are two main rhetorical trends in contemporary western culture:a.Stylistics, which is associated with two aspects of writing: First,the various registers, e.g.: scientific and technical writing, business writing and journalism. Second, the stylisticvariants---literary language and style, including personal style, and styles of different times and schools.b.Rhetoric, which is chiefly concerned with techniques of how toinfluence the audience: the functions and effects of different symbols on communication activities; measures to promote mutual understanding and to affect the emotions of the audience; skills to handle persuasion and arguments as described in the “three aesthetic criteria” and the “three levels of rhetorical operations.”2) Specifically speaking, rhetoric consists of two basic aspects:a. Communicative rhetoric, which emphasizes the choice of wordsand phrases, and selection of sentence patterns, organizing paragraphs and whole pieces of writing in such a way that ideas are expressed mostly clearly, most accurately and most appropriately and the best results are achieved in communication.b. Aesthetic Rhetoric, which stresses the vividness and gracefulnessin expressing one’s ideas by artistic approaches like the use of figures of speech so as to increase the emotional appeal of one’s speech or writing.5.The three fundamental elements in writingThe three fundamental elements in writing are fact, reason, and feeling. Any piece of written discourse contains a combination of theseelements.6.Goals for studying rhetoricRhetoric is the art of using language effectively.1)The basic requirement of being effective is to use fewer words toaccomplish the best communicative purpose.Cf: 1a. The sports event began its commencement with the fine performance of 1000 children.1b. The sports event started with the splendid group calisthenics of 1000 children.The two sentences refer to the same thing. It is obvious that the second sentence is more effective because it is concise and specific: oneword(started)is used for three(began its commencement) and specific reference(group calisthenics)for the more abstractreference(performance). Besides, the adjective “fine” in the first sentence is not so impressive as “splendid” in the second.2)Rhetoric is closely related to grammar and also based ongrammar. To be grammatically correct is fundamental to writing, but that is not enough.7.The relation between rhetoric and grammarRhetoric is closely related to grammar and also based on grammar.But they are different.---Grammar maps out the possible; rhetoric narrows the possible down to the desirable and effective.---Grammar is the law of language, considered as language;rhetoric is the art of language, considered as thought.--- Grammar tells what is correct; rhetoric tells what is effective and pleasing.8.Three basic levels of rhetoricRhetoric involves choice of words, sentence patterns ,figures of speech, organizations of paragraphs and composition. This process can be broken down into three basic levels:Level One: words and phrasesLevel Two: sentence varietyLevel Three: organizing paragraphs into a complete text.作业：ⅠQuestions:1.What is rhetoric?2.What is the difference between grammar and rhetoric?3.What are three basic levels of rhetoric?Ⅱ.Compare the following pairs of sentences, and determine which sentence in each pair is more effective.1.a. They wander into the church and aimlessly lookaround.b. They wander into the church and look around aimlessly.2. a. They, at last, know what they are seeing.b. They know what they are seeing at last.3.a. The curtain comes down as soon as the last boat has gone.b. As soon as the last boat has gone, down comes the curtain.4.a. The boy said that he was thirsty and could drink a big bottleof water.c.The boy said that he was dying of thirst and could drink up thewhole sea.教学后记：This chapter serves as a complement of the course book. A fundamental knowledge of rhetoric is helpful to further study.。