Rhetorical Definitions and Strategies
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Questions and Answers

What was the primary challenge faced by climate scientists post email leak?

  • Defending their credibility in the scientific community (correct)
  • Appealing to the general public's understanding of the term 'trick'
  • Justifying their stance on climate change
  • Convincing the media to report on their research

    • What was the basis of the opposing lines of argument regarding the term 'trick'?

  • The researcher's membership in both the scientific and general communities (correct)
  • The moral implications of using the term in a scientific context
  • The cultural connotations associated with the term
  • The differing definitions of the term in scientific and general contexts

    • In the context of a disputed term in a translated text, what can rhetors turn to for support?

  • The cultural context of the target audience
  • The translator's intended meaning
  • The original language and its speakers' usage conventions (correct)
  • The historical context of the original text

    • In Catherine Booth's pamphlet, what biblical passage does she challenge?

    <p>1 Corinthians 14:34-35</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary concern for a rhetor when giving a definition, according to Quintilian?

    <p>To ensure the definition is relevant to the argumentative goal</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does Catherine Booth argue is the narrower sense of the Greek word 'lalein'?

    <p>Prattling, babbling, and making inarticulate sounds</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the key to forming a correct definition, according to Quintilian?

    <p>Understanding the argumentative goal before deciding on a definition</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is implied by the phrase 'rhetors can turn to the original language and its speakers' usage conventions'?

    <p>Rhetors can appeal to the original language as an authority</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the central issue in the example of the man accused of sacrilege?

    <p>Whether the man's action was sacrilegious</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the strategy of the prosecutor in defining sacrilege?

    <p>To define sacrilege broadly to include the defendant's action</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the outcome of climate scientists' appeals to scientific convention?

    <p>It does not appear that their appeals were especially effective</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the strategy of the defendant in defining sacrilege?

    <p>To define sacrilege narrowly to exclude the defendant's action</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the main purpose of Catherine Booth's argument in her pamphlet?

    <p>To argue against prohibitions on women's preaching</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the relationship between the argumentative goal and the persuasive definition, according to Quintilian?

    <p>The argumentative goal determines the persuasive definition</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the meaning of the Greek adjective amauros?

    <p>Dark or dim</p> Signup and view all the answers

    How many different strategies does Quintilian suggest for articulating a persuasive definition?

    <p>Four</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the significance of Aristotle's predicables in relation to Quintilian's advice on persuasive definitions?

    <p>They provide a similar approach to articulating definitions</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the original use of the term Mauros in Latin?

    <p>An ethnic term</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the significance of the European Christian association of Muslims with the devil?

    <p>It contributed to the negative connotations of the term Moor</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the outcome of applying the term Moor to Africans in the seventeenth century?

    <p>It applied negative associations from Muslims to Africans</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the common thread among the various uses of the term Moor over time?

    <p>Its connotation of strangeness or otherness</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the significance of the term Moor becoming a synonym for black?

    <p>It contributed to the negative associations of the term</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the relationship between the terms Moor and African in the seventeenth century?

    <p>Moor carried more negative connotations than African</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the primary characteristic associated with the devil in European Christian mythology?

    <p>Blackness</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the basis for defining all other terms in the passage?

    <p>The definition of dominion</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What do rhetoricians Kenneth Burke and Richard Weaver call words that are ranked above others?

    <p>Ultimate terms</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the name of the branch of linguistics that investigates the relationship between language structure and general mental processes?

    <p>Cognitive linguistics</p> Signup and view all the answers

    According to research in cognitive linguistics, how are concepts symbolized by words organized in our minds?

    <p>As part of larger, coherent conceptual units</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What determines the meanings of other words in a text?

    <p>The meanings of certain words</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What status do terms like fruitful, multiply, and subdue have in relation to terms like fish, birds, and cattle?

    <p>Higher status</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the significance of linchpin terms in the interpretation of a text?

    <p>They determine the meanings of other words</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What do the words security, rights, and innovation represent in early twenty-first century America?

    <p>Ultimate terms</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary goal of defining linchpin terms in a passage?

    <p>To control the way a passage and the issue that depends on it are framed</p> Signup and view all the answers

    In which field of study is ambiguity more prevalent?

    <p>Literary criticism</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the effect of defining linchpin terms in a passage?

    <p>It heightens the impact of the definition on the larger issue</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary goal of literary criticism when interpreting a text?

    <p>To open up and expand the meaning of the text</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary goal of law when interpreting a text?

    <p>To regulate beliefs and behaviors</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why is definition a key issue in law?

    <p>Because it provides a consistent interpretation of normative texts</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the result of continually subjecting the meaning of a text to radical revision?

    <p>It makes it difficult to regulate beliefs and behaviors</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why do rhetors discover and exploit ambiguities in literary criticism?

    <p>Because they offer a wide range of possibilities for interpretation</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Rhetorical Definitions

    • Quintilian advises rhetors to guard against giving unnecessary, irrelevant, ambiguous, or opposing definitions that go against their interests.
    • The rhetor's first task is to understand their ultimate argumentative goal, and then formulate a persuasive definition that supports that goal.

    Strategies for Formulating Definitions

    • Quintilian suggests four strategies for articulating a definition, echoing Aristotle's predicables.
    • Rhetors can use these strategies to define a term in a text, especially in cases of disputed terms.

    Defining Terms in a Translated Text

    • When dealing with a disputed term in a translated text, rhetors can turn to the original language and its speakers' usage conventions to support or oppose a definition.
    • For example, Catherine Booth used Greek dictionaries and commentaries to argue against the ordinary reading of a biblical passage as a general prohibition against women's speech in church.

    The Importance of Linchpin Terms

    • Linchpin terms are words that symbolize and control the way a passage and the issue that depends on it are framed.
    • Defining linchpin terms can have a significant impact on how a passage is interpreted and how a larger issue is understood and resolved.
    • Cognitive linguistics suggests that the concepts symbolized by words are organized, structured, and given meaning as part of larger, coherent conceptual units in our minds.

    Disputes over Definition and Ambiguity

    • Disputes over definition abound in law, while disputes over ambiguity are more prevalent in literary criticism.
    • Understanding the rhetorical affordances of each can help us see why ambiguity is often the archetypical issue of literary criticism and definition is the archetypical issue of law.
    • In literary criticism, ambiguity is encouraged to open up and expand the meaning of a text, while in law, the goal is to regulate beliefs and behaviors consistently, making definition more crucial.

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    Description

    Learn about the importance of definitions in rhetoric, and discover strategies for formulating effective definitions, as advocated by Quintilian and echoing Aristotle's predicables.

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