What is the role of rhetoric in influencing people’s attitudes and beliefs?

Question

Okay I am so lost with this question. I have done some reading and as far as what I am getting, rhetoric is basically a form of persuasuion. If that is true, the question is asking "What is the role of persuasion in influencing people's attitudes and beliefs?" correct? Please help. I have gone to multiple websites and I am finding just the rhetorical devices, I do not need them. I just need help to understand this question.

Answer 1

Modern rhetoric is a type of persuasion that is often full of vague platitudes that sound good but generally fail to address the complexity of most human issues and conditions. Politics and political discourse are full of these ideas. "America must be strong!" Okay, yeah, I like strong but just what does strong mean and how does my definition vary from yours?

Advertising is the most ubiquitous form of modern rhetoric that I can think of. For example, advertisers often show cars being driven in secluded mountain roads where the driver has the entire road to himself. However, most of us drive on city streets that are crowded and where we usually have to keep our speed below 30. If not, we are on busy interstates that are monitored by state troopers who love to ticket speeders. Why do I need 300 horsepower when I can only go 30?

The first step is to distract people from the real issues or needs. For example, the real issues of the car's cost, maintenance records, operating costs (gas, repairs, insurance), and reliability. How you actually use the car is buried under the fantasy about how you could use the car (e.g. most off-road vehicles are never driven off-road but I must be rugged if I drive such a rugged vehicle).

Once you distract people, then you use repeated messages to change their beliefs. For example, you change your belief from wanting a car that is inexpensive and reliable to one that says your are strong, sexy, and cool. So changing your attitude is the road to changing your fundamental beliefs. What's interesting about this, is that few people ever realize that their beliefs have changed or that they have made decisions based on a set of beliefs incongruous from their own.

The classic definition of rhetoric (the Platonic or Aristotelian version) was based on using the best arguments and information to encourage people to make the best decision for the common good and, therefore, themselves.

However, the modern definition and use of rhetoric is to use simplistic ideas (like lifestyle and fashion) to encourage people to make decisions that benefit an individual organization (the company selling you something).

If you want the classic definition, you have to look at Plato. If you want the modern definition, look out your window. Marketing is everywhere and not a drop of intelligence to spare.

Answer 2

Believe me, I'm not sure if this is right. But if you hear the same things over and over again the listeners start thinking it must be true. That's why politicians say the same thing over and over and over and over (rhetoric) again. It's like all this talk about global warming--that man's actions are causing it rather than just natural climatic cycles.