Offensive Persuasion Essay

There is a difference between aggression and offense. While aggressive arguments inspire revenge and hatred, offensive rhetoric utilizes methods of persuasion to win arguments. Strategic, offensive persuasion consists of many different tools to be effective. For instance, the primary step towards building an argument is setting goals. The persuader must form goals for themselves and the audience; “Argument’s Rule Number One: Never debate the undebatable. Instead, focus on your goals” (36). In order to be effective, having an understanding of the audience’s views, commonplace, provides significant insight into ways to approach arguments. Although these rhetoric methods are complex, understanding what to argue and how to argue is just as important …show more content…
Persuasion can be evident in numerous forms, like television, radio, art, speeches, and daily conversations. Also, Aristotle originally proclaimed that persuasion is an essential characteristic of productive leaders. Therefore, the use of rhetoric is necessary for people of power because “Rhetoric is the art of influence, friendship, and eloquence, of ready wit and irrefutable logic” (4). Since leaders gain their political and social power from obtaining the trust of their followers, they must be effective, influential orators. Along with virtue, disinterest, and practical wisdom, significant, eminent leaders, like Marcus Tullius Cicero, John F. Kennedy, and Susan B. Anthony, used persuasion in similar manners like advertising companies and politicians of today. Ultimately, despite the beliefs of individual thinking, the human nature of a person, like emotion and gestures, are used as persuasion. For instance, “The Food Network uses techniques identical to that of the porn industry—over miked sound, very little plot, good-looking characters, along with lavish closeups of firm flesh and flowing juices” (8). Although this comparison is odd, it does still illustrate the significance of persuasion in everyday life. Examples of arguments are impossible to avoid, and “...[they form] a real life Matrix, the supreme software that drives our social lives. And …show more content…
For instance, methods like an identity strategy use wit and cleverness to make the audience agree with the persuader’s decisions. The use of irony and figures of speech, like analogies and oxymorons, help an audience identify with the persuader’s choice. In result, “They will identify with what you want, and see the alternative choice, the one you oppose, as something alien to the relationship” (200). This connects to the idea of ethos because an audience is more inclined to trust the persuader’s decision making if they trust the persuader’s character. Also, advanced arguments introduce the idea of kairos, which is rhetorical timing and the ability to seize persuasive moments. With patience and often figures that make the opposition vulnerable, “Kairos... means doing the right thing—practicing your decorum, offering the perfect choice, making the perfect pitch—at the right time” (227). Not only can kairos further the momentum of an argument, but it can also recover the ethos of a persuader by changing the audience and occasion. Along with kairos, “The medium can make or break a persuasive moment. Say the right thing at the right time over the right channel, and the world is your rhetorical oyster” (237). Certain mediums will convey different emotions and rhetoric that will ensure the outcome of an argument.