FLC Writing Program / Rhetorical Knowledge
The arts of rhetoric have been practiced for nearly 2,500 years dating back to ancient Greece.
Because rhetoricians have long been concerned with speaking well and advocating causes relevant to society, rhetoric is often understood as the “art of persuasion.” In the 4 th
Century
BCE, Aristotle defined rhetoric as “"the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion." In 2004, Wayne Booth defined rhetoric as effective communication that encompasses the “entire range of resources that human beings share for producing effects on one another.”
Defining rhetoric, however, is not as important as understanding how it functions in—and changes with—society. Because there are no set rules in rhetoric, rhetoricians must be aware of the specific situation, or context, in which a conversation takes place in order to better understand how to be persuasive. For example, funeral speeches are different from marriage speeches because of the environment in which they take place, so “rhetors” (people who practice rhetoric) must be aware of their specific contexts. This dynamic nature of rhetoric requires careful consideration of the environment prior to communication.
“Rhetoricians” (people who study rhetoric) usually refer to the dynamic environments surrounding communications as the rhetorical situation. By definition, a rhetorical situation is “a communicative situation that is influenced by words or language.” The rhetorical situation is composed of several different parts:

Purpose—The specific change in knowledge, thought, or action the writer desires from the audience (implicit, explicit)

Audience—Who the writer wishes to reach and persuade (primary, secondary)

Writer—The creator of the text; influenced by her or his own unique personal, cultural, and educational history

Subject—The topic of inquiry, study, or discussion

Context—The relevant aspects of culture or current events that affect the author’s attitude and the audience’s perception of the subject

FLC Writing Program / Rhetorical Knowledge
The Communication/Rhetorical Triangle
Consequently, scholars in rhetoric have developed numerous “tools” to help people better understand context and create more successful texts. One of these tools is rhetorical triangle—a way to envision the dynamic relationship between author and audience. The rhetorical triangle is often represented the following way:
Context
Writer/Ethos
Context
Subject/Logos
Context
Purpose
Audience/Pathos
Context
Most importantly, the above diagram—often pictured as a circle and even a rhombus— demonstrates the dynamic relationships between a writer and reader. For example, different audiences require different types of evidence. Some people may be more moved by hard facts
(statistics and numbers) while others may want anecdotal evidence like first-hand experience and more practical examples. It is the rhetor’s job to identify these relationships and make the necessary adjustments to create successful communication (success being measured by how well the communication achieves its intended purpose).