September 3, 2008, 12:22 am by Brett

My political science teacher told me in the spring of 2007 that politics is, “about who gets what, where, and when . . . and sometimes why.” Rhetoric is a tool used by politicians not only to distribute wealth among the citizens, but in some cases to remain in power.

“Great argument doesn’t always mean elaborate speech, though. The most effective rhetoric disguises its art.” This quote cited from the Heinrichs essay, “Open Your Eyes,” sparked the attention of at least one of my classmates. Upon reading this line, I too couldn’t help but think about the art of disguising rhetoric.

For me, it goes back to Heinrichs’ dilemma with the toothpaste and his son. He conceded in order to gain what he wanted. He disguised his rhetoric in his submission by allowing his son to believe he had won the argument. Essentially, he convinced his audience that he wasn’t using rhetoric at all. I would propose that some of our politicians hope to convince the public of the same.

In the case of gaining or holding political office, the most effective way to gain votes is not to tell people to vote for a particular candidate directly, but to allow the constituency to become convinced that they have arrived at their conclusion themselves. In order to present an idea of the candidate, rhetorical arguments must be made. However, if an informed public is aware of rhetorical devices, then their vote may be harder to capture.

What better way to remain in power than to rob the citizens of their awareness of rhetorical devices by removing it from the education system? Why disguise something when you can make it disappear? Although I am no expert, I claim this may be one reason rhetoric fell out of fashion soon after the establishment of our United States. Fortunately enough, rhetoric is finding its way back to school with a new set of clothes, a Transformer’s lunch box, and an i-Pod. Regardless of whether or not rhetoric was intentionally hidden from us or not, I am happy to welcome rhetoric back into full view of the public sphere.

If you would allow me to meddle with Madonna’s words:

You know that we are living in a rhetorical world
and I am a rhetorical girl . . . or boy.