RHETORIC. 



astronomical, astrological, geographical, 

 chemical, &c. as they are more parti- 

 cularly mentioned in his letter to Peter 

 Ramus, in the year 1568, which Adrian 

 Romanus inserted in the preface to the 

 first part of his idea of mathematics. 



RHETORIC, from the Greek word 

 ge&>. to speak, may be defined the art 

 of speaking with persuasion. 



This art, like all others, is the result 

 of observations and experiments made 

 by men of good capacities and of en- 

 lightened minds. After multiplied and 

 often defective essays, those principles 

 are at length discovered, which distin- 

 guish between the good and the bad, 

 between the faulty and the perfect. 

 These principles, when reduced to me- 

 thod, and well arranged, save succeed- 

 ing enquirers much pains and trouble, 

 considerably shorten the road to know- 

 ledge, and materially assist in the for- 

 mation of a correct judgment. As in 

 respect to poetry, it is contended, that 

 though accurate rules of criticism will 

 not bestow genius, they will check re- 

 dundancy and bombast, and detect all 

 the errors into which the competitors 

 for the laurel are too apt to be betrayed, 

 so with regard to the precepts of rhe- 

 toric it may safely be asserted, that 

 though they will not generate that 

 energy of mind which rises to the 

 highest flights of eloquence, they will 

 effectually warn the orator against in- 

 congruity in the disposition of his mat- 

 ter, absurdity in argument, and the 

 false glitter of ornament which amuses 

 instead of convincing, or those injudi- 

 cious attempts to interest the feelings 

 which excite ridicule rather than sym- 



This will be the more manifest if we 

 consider that the foundation of eloquence 

 is right reason, and that its exercise im- 

 plies the possession of that faculty both 

 in the speaker and the hearer. It was 

 well observed by the Stagyrite, that 

 rhetoric is nearly allied to logic. 



In displaying the utility of the art of 

 rhetoric, Quintilian expresses himself in 

 the following forcible terms : " If in any 

 thing the Creator has distinguished us 

 from the rest of the animals, it is by the 

 gift of speech. They surpass us in 

 strength, in patience, in size, in swift- 

 ness, and especially in independence of 

 foreign aid. Guided by instinct, they 

 soon learn by its instructions to walk, to 

 feed themselves, and to swim. Their 

 protection against the cold, and their 



weapons of defence, are provided fbf 

 them by nature. But what pains and 

 labour does it cost man to procure all 

 these things. Reason is our inheritance, 

 and seems to associate us to immortal be- 

 ings. But how feeble would reason be 3 

 were it not for the faculty of expressing 

 our thoughts by speech, which is the 

 faithful interpreter of reason. This is 

 what is wanting to the inferior animals 

 much more than understanding, of which 

 it cannot be justly said that they are ab- 

 solutely destitute. If then we have re- 

 ceived nothing from the Deity better 

 than the use of speech, what is there 

 which we ought to cultivate with greater 

 industry ? What object is more worthy 

 of our ambition than that of rising above 

 other men by that faculty, which alone 

 raises them above the level of the 

 brutes ?" 



A still greater dignity will attach to 

 the acquirement of eloquence, and con- 

 sequently to the science of rhetoric, if 

 it be considered that eloquence and free- 

 dom go hand in hand. It is in free 

 states, and under popular governments 

 alone, that oratory can flourish. When 

 the people are appealed to on the sub- 

 ject of state affairs ; when political mea- 

 sures are to be enforced by the en- 

 lightening of their judgements, or by the 

 excitement of their passions ; the great- 

 est talents are exercised in studying the 

 art of persuasion, and the result is 

 found in the most wonderfnl efforts of 

 human ability. But when brute force 

 predominates, and the people bow be- 

 neath the yoke of tyranny, the voice 

 of reason is stilled, and eloquence is 

 mute. 



The ancient rhetoricians distinguish 

 oratorical composition into three species; 

 viz. the demonstrative, the deliberative, 

 and the judicial. 



The first of those species is chiefly con- 

 versant in bestowing praise or blame, and 

 comprehends in its definition the pane- 

 gyric and the funeral eulogy, which were 

 so much in use among the ancients. In 

 the former class may be enumerated Iso- 

 crates's Panegyric on Evagoras King of 

 Salamis, Cicero's Oration on the pardon- 

 ing of Marcellus, his Philippics against 

 Mark Antony, and Pliny's Panegyric on 

 Trajan. Of the latter specimens may be 

 found in the funeral orations composed 

 by Thucydides and Plato, to commemo- 

 rate the virtues of the Athenians who- 

 fell at the commencement of the Pelo- 

 ponnesian war. Nor have the moderns 

 been wanting in excellent specimens of 



