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Aristotle says rhetoric is the counterpart (antistrophe) of dialectic. [1]: I.1.1–2 He explains the similarities between the two but fails to comment on the differences. Here he introduces the term enthymeme. [1]: I.1.3 Chapter Two Aristotle defines rhetoric as the ability in a particular case to see the available means of persuasion.
The structure of Rhetoric to Alexander is quite similar to that of Aristotle's work. [4] Chapters 1-5 deal with arguments specific to each of the species of rhetoric corresponding to the first book of Aristotle's work. Chapters 6-22 are about "uses" what Aristotle calls "topics", discussing them in the latter part of his second book.
In his treatise Topics, Aristotle does not explicitly define topic, though it is "at least primarily a strategy for argument not infrequently justified or explained by a principle". [2] He characterises it in the Rhetoric [3] thus: "I call the same thing element and topic; for an element or a topic is a heading under which many enthymemes fall."
Aristotle referred to the enthymeme as "the body of proof", "the strongest of rhetorical proofs...a kind of syllogism" (Rhetoric I, 1.3,11). He considered it to be one of two kinds of proof, the other of which was the paradeigma. Maxims, Aristotle thought, were a derivative of enthymemes. (Rhetoric II.XX.1).
The modes of persuasion, modes of appeal or rhetorical appeals (Greek: pisteis) are strategies of rhetoric that classify a speaker's or writer's appeal to their audience. These include ethos, pathos, and logos, all three of which appear in Aristotle's Rhetoric. [1]
Following Aristotle's theory, Roman Senator Cicero explained that by adapting to the emotions of the audience, one can be successful in gaining their respect and attention. [15] Similarly, according to Ross Wintered, speakers and authors adjust their rhetorical stance to accommodate a particular audience. [ 16 ]
Aristotle's treatise on rhetoric systematically describes civic rhetoric as a human art or skill (techne). It is more of an objective theory [clarification needed] than it is an interpretive theory with a rhetorical tradition. Aristotle's art of rhetoric emphasizes persuasion as the purpose of rhetoric.
In Aristotelian rhetoric, an enthymeme is known as a "rhetorical syllogism": it mirrors the form of a syllogism, but it is based on opinion rather than fact. Epanalepsis – a figure of speech in which the same word or phrase appears both at the beginning and at the end of a clause.