Rhetoric [Paperback]

Aristotle (Author), W. Rhys Roberts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 31, 2012 | ISBN-10: 1604444657 | ISBN-13: 978-1604444650

Aristotle is generally credited with developing the basics of the system of rhetoric that "thereafter served as its touchstone", influencing the development of rhetorical theory from ancient through modern times. The Rhetoric is regarded by most rhetoricians as "the most important single work on persuasion ever written." Gross and Walzer concur, indicating that, just as Whitehead considered all Western philosophy a footnote to Plato, "all subsequent rhetorical theory is but a series of responses to issues raised" by Aristotle's Rhetoric. This is largely a reflection of disciplinary divisions, dating back to Peter Ramus's attacks on Aristotlean rhetoric in the late 16th century and continuing to the present.( wikipedia.org)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for the previous edition:

"[This book] is much more than a translation; it is a guide to the literature, a mini-commentary, and a do-it-yourself manual to understanding Aristotle. . . . [It] deserves to be the standard translation for decades to come."--Quarterly Journal of Speech

"George Kennedy has taken on a difficult job--providing a scholarly edition of the Rhetoric that will also serve as a textbook for students--and has succeeded admirably. His introduction gives an excellent overview of Aristotle's work and is a pleasure to read. The chapter-by-chapter outline is magnificent."--Erika Lindemann, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

"Easy-to-read, trustworthy, and has the added distinction of bringing out more clearly than any other translation the way Aristotle's reasoning works. It will improve the general state of Aristotle studies in the English-speaking world."--Thomas Conley, University of Illinois

"Kennedy's extensive use of footnotes and careful editing allow students access to Aristotle's writings as few other translations are able to do. This book is a must for any contemporary study of classical rhetorical theory."--James J. Tarbox, Oregon State University

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Aristotle (384 BC-322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology. Together with Plato and Socrates (Plato's teacher), Aristotle is one of the most important founding figures in Western philosophy. Aristotle's writings were the first to create a comprehensive system of Western philosophy, encompassing morality and aesthetics, logic and science, politics and metaphysics. Aristotle's views on the physical sciences profoundly shaped medieval scholarship, and their influence extended well into the Renaissance, although they were ultimately replaced by Newtonian physics. In the zoological sciences, some of his observations were confirmed to be accurate only in the 19th century. His works contain the earliest known formal study of logic, which was incorporated in the late 19th century into modern formal logic. In metaphysics, Aristotelianism had a profound influence on philosophical and theological thinking in the Islamic and Jewish traditions in the Middle Ages, and it continues to influence Christian theology, especially Eastern Orthodox theology, and the scholastic tradition of the Catholic Church. His ethics, though always influential, gained renewed interest with the modern advent of virtue ethics. All aspects of Aristotle's philosophy continue to be the object of active academic study today. Though Aristotle wrote many elegant treatises and dialogues (Cicero described his literary style as "a river of gold"),it is thought that the majority of his writings are now lost and only about one-third of the original works have survived. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 132 pages
• Publisher: Indoeuropeanpublishing.com (January 31, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1604444657
• ISBN-13: 978-1604444650
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.3 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #911,915 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Misleading link leads to wrong edition December 27, 2012

By Odradek

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Careful where you click! You think you're ordering the Kennedy translation, right? But if you click on the link to "used" under "formats," Amazon will take you to an entirely different book - an outdated translation with no footnotes or critical apparatus, published not by Oxford Univ. Press but by "ReadaClassic.com" - without warning you. Really frustrating when you get the wrong book after waiting 10 days for it to arrive!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great footnotes October 3, 2008

By laura157

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The footnotes on this text are great. A lot of the wording can be heavy for a first read-through of Aristotle, and Kennedy does his best to make Aristotle more accessible to people who are new to Rhetoric.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars This is not the George Kennedy translation November 19, 2012

By Eric Luttrell

Format:Paperback

This review is for the "Readaclassic" publication (check the publisher, not the title, descriptions, or reviews). This is NOT the George Kennedy translation. It's the W. D. Ross 1908 translation that is available for free on the internet. All descriptions and reviews on the Amazon page refer to the Kennedy 1991 edition, BUT THIS IS NOT IT. There are NO footnotes, NO commentary, NO introduction or preface, and NO way to cite the text. That means students can't use this version for research. Essentially, this publisher simply copied texts available online, pasted it into his own document, and "published" it without the usual publication data. I understand that Readaclassic is just looking to make a quick buck from someone else's labor, but I'm disappointed that Amazon.com is allowing con artists to flood the market with cheap, mislabeled fakes.