Rhetoric All Around Us

Blogging. According to Oxford's American Dictionary, a "blog" is "a personal website or web page on which an individual records opinions, links to others sites, etc. on a regular basis". I find no reason to argue. My question is, in what way should I utilize this white page in front of me? Perhaps it's best to start with what we are covering in class right now, as this is rather fresh in my mind: rhetoric.

What is rhetoric? If we again consult Oxford, we find this definition: "the art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing". Ok. But I daresay rhetoric can be applied to a much broader range of media. How about audio/visual? Radio and television commercials are a constant cacophony in our ears, attempting to explain to us why a certain product, thing, idea or person is something in which we should invest our time, money or vote.

A person skilled in the art of persuasion can find a lucrative career in the field of law, where attorneys are hired and paid based upon the power they hold to make a judge or jury think a certain way about an issue, encouraging them to view ideas from the perspective of their clients. My father is an attorney himself, and for 27 years has been representing the needs of his clientele before an audience. For him, the art of successful persuasion has earned the money needed to clothe and feed his wife and seven children.

As the textbook Envision in Depth: Reading, Writing and Researching Arguments points out in chapter 1, a college campus is full of rhetorical exercises for any reader. Everywhere I turn here at Clemson University there are signs, posters and billboards posted by every organization vying for my attention, attempting to persuade me and all other readers that their event, their activity or their cause should take precedence. What better course to study in my first semester here, then, than one that teaches not only how to comprehend the rhetoric we see as an audience but also to cultivate our own rhetorical skills to persuade others to "join our cause"? These skills will come in handy not only on the college campus but throughout life, sometimes, as in the case of my father, ones that provide for the well-being of himself and his family.

So here goes. Hopefully by this time in four months I will be able to distinguish more clearly between good and bad reasoning as well as sharpen my own skills of persuasion. Wish me luck.