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  • Essay / The art of persuasion in its variety of forms

    Persuasion happens all the time and everywhere. Persuasion comes in the form of a well-prepared speech, such as selling a product or idea; and in an act of spontaneous and intimate relationship. It also appears in another well-developed formal speech aimed at convincing the audience. “The word persuasion is not limited to this term; there are many words that indicate the purpose of persuasion. (Cook, 2012). For example, “attract”, “advise”, “incite”. etc.' Contemporary studies in linguistics indicate that persuasion goes back a long way, perhaps as far back as the fourth century BC. “This was practiced during the times of ancient Greece and other civilizations, such as ancient Rome and ancient India.” (Cook, 2012) Moreover, styles of persuasion vary from time to time and differ from place to place depending on its objectives. For example, a political speech is a way to reach the public. “Persuasive speech is defined as an encounter with an objective, a method with obvious effectiveness on an individual or a mass to promote something they would otherwise refuse.” The term “paralanguage” relates to the analysis of “body language”; it dates back to the times of the Greeks. “Paralanguage” means “by or alongside language”. In persuasion, paralanguage involves adding enhancement to achieve a goal. For example, “a child cried or screamed while seeking empathy from someone. This also applies to adults. For example, a suspect in a courtroom might shed a tear or become angry; to convince the jurors. (Almeer, 2020). Additionally, rhetoric occurs in written or oral form. Freedom of expression is essentially linked to the effectiveness of language. Scholar Vickers (1998) believes there is a connection between the rise of democracy in Athens and rhetoric. (Cook, 2012). The following essay discusses persuasion in its various forms. It highlights the historical context, identity, styles and strategies of rhetorical discourse. In addition, this involves evaluating the effectiveness of the persuasive speech. Finally, it analyzes Obama's 2002 speech as an Illinois state senator. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay “Rhetoric is the art of governing the minds of men. » (Plato). Three essential perspectives Aristotle believed to differentiate persuasion. More than 2,000 years ago, the philosopher Aristotle proposed three methods of persuasion for persuading audiences: ethos, logos, and pathos. These strategies depend on different characteristics. Furthermore, these strategies are still valid and used in current persuasion approaches; especially in the areas of policy and sales promotion, such as advertising and public relations. First, ethos, an important feature of Ethos strategy is that it depends on the credibility of the writer or speaker. Additionally, an effective message will only be well received if the speaker deserves trust. The speaker's background and previous actions are very important for the listeners' judgment. For example, when a speaker is an old woman or an elderly man, he will use his wisdom by saying "In my long, long experience." In other words, speakers use their credibility, in that sense, it is their age and experience. Second, logic and reasons are the foundation for building a bridge of trust between a speaker and an audience. In this concept, the speaker must present a well-constructed logical argument called logos; which is based on evidence. For example, the public may raise questions regarding the intention ofthe speaker, namely: “Was it true, is it true, will it be true” (Toulmin, 2003). Additionally, a logical strategy is applied in academic arguments. However, it is not limited to this and can be seen in advertisements and political attempts. Third, pathos is an emotional technique for moving people's feelings. In order to attract public attention; the speaker would use words, expressions and sentences to access mass meanings with words filled with feelings. For example, a speaker would present a moving story or event to convince the crowds. In particular, a story about “war, illness, death” works and moves people enormously. These three techniques in their varied characteristics differ in their approaches. Thus, they are used separately or combined, and most effectively when assumed all together. Rhetoric is the use of language productively in forms of writing and speaking. Rhetoric is a necessity in persuasion and its devices are distinguished by their forms and their needs. These devices achieve their purposes as a writer or speaker. To consider a type of rhetoric, one must consider the occasion itself. For example, writing or speaking in memory of a politician would be different from speaking at a student's graduation ceremony. Additionally, the tone of the speaker would change the entire message intended to be sent. By choosing a certain tone of persuasion, such as formal or informal, direct or indirect; tone in this case is as important as context. In other words, to formulate the ideal speech, the spokesperson must know his audience. Therefore, the tone as well as the context would either be emphasized or lightly delivered. Furthermore, every aspect must be examined, because "the speaker would like to impose a grandiose style and overwhelm his audience, or leave them with simple or direct rhetoric." Furthermore, there are different perceptions towards rhetoric. The philosopher Cicero argues that practicing rhetorical activities is virtuous and beneficial to people. However, rhetoric must be learned through school. Currently, “the United States teaches rhetoric in its educational institutions. In contrast, Plato suggests that Socrates believes that rhetoric is a tool of manipulation and that he favors a simple approach to persuasion. (Cook, 2012). Additionally, a negative view is seen when politicians fail to deliver on their promises by using rhetoric in gray areas. This is also called “propaganda”. The term is associated with the lack of clarity in people's "misinformation." There are many rhetorical devices used in all types of persuasion. Some of these devices, namely the rhetorical question, allusion, repetition, parallel, etc. They are widely used and recommended in public speaking, advertising and public relations. First, the rhetorical question involves addressing an issue in public speech. Furthermore, the question is not intended to be answered either en masse or most often or by the speaker. For example, in his speech Churchill says: “You ask: what is our goal? I can answer that in one word: victory. (Cook, 2012). Subsequently, another type of rhetorical device is the allusion. “It is when a known personality, a place, a concept or idea, a cultural or historical event, a significant political event and literary references are mentioned to the public.” (Miele, 2017). For example, “Job teaches us how to trust a sovereign God in trials.” (Bible, 2020). It is important tonote that the religious rhetorical allusions are very strong; especially when used in the right place, for the right audience and by the right person. Additionally, when a speaker uses allusion as a rhetorical device, he or she tends to use “social identity.” Additionally, the presenter addressed the audience by saying words like “us and us”. meaningfully to unite the two, the speaker and the audience as “one”. For example, “leaders who use a mutual “social identity” in their speeches using “we” and “us” are likely to be successful in reaching audiences. » Subsequently, another rhetorical tool is repetition. It is used to emphasize an idea by repeating a word or phrase in private or public speech. This tool is particularly constantly used in political speeches. For example, in his speech, Abraham Lincoln repeated the word people: “This government of the people, by the people, for the people.” Finally, the application of parallel device techniques or “parallelism” in rhetoric. Parallelism is the use of non-identical words or expressions in overt sermons. For example: “We were told to either vote online or find the nearest voting center. » Additionally, words like “either and either, neither nor nor” are typical parallel words. It is worth mentioning that these words are followed by a verb. Rhetorical techniques are widely used in advertising today. Nevertheless, “emotional methods are extremely emphasized in marketing to convey and convince customers. The repetitive style of advertising is also called dress rehearsal. (Cook, 2012). For example: “Here is your place, here is your meal, here is your satisfaction. » The richness of repetitive and emotional sentences could be seen as a replacement for the rational approach (logos). On the other hand, the outreach department is one of the faces of public relations. “His job is to improve the image of the organization; inside his environment and outside with customers. » For example, an annual staff dinner would be organized to improve relations between management and employees. On the other side, the public relations department extends its association relationship with consumers through emails, phone calls and surveys. Furthermore, Moloney (2000) states that public relations has two sides of the coin: “positive and negative”. (Fawkes, 2007). Furthermore, Erftmier and Dyson (1986) compare personal persuasion and public argumentation by stating that formal persuasion is well prepared with carefully chosen words. On the other hand, an intimate approach would be spontaneous by a child. Furthermore, in evaluating persuasion, Holiday believes that the human being's ability to use language is an excellent characteristic for socializing and persuading one's needs. Good or bad persuasion depends on the abundance of evidence and reasons. In its comparison with the emotionally curious approach, it normally seeks the interest of the individual. Halliday raises questions in "argument theory" by asking, "What was the intention behind this?" Is there enough evidence used here? Will this achieve its goal? Halliday considers the criteria and type of language in his argument. Also, the types of language like formal and informal. While specific fields, like medicine or law. Finally, he believes that “cultural differences” determine the success of the debate: “A speech given in Japan could be interpreted differently elsewhere. » (Cook, 2020). The 44th US President, Barack Obama, delivered an anti-war sermon when he was..