Kairos: The Significance of Time and Circumstances in Speech
According to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, kairos is defined as “a time when conditions are right for the accomplishment of a crucial action: the opportune and decisive moment.” The Greek term has been an important subject within the scope of rhetoric since ancient times, mentioned by philosophers and rhetoricians such as Socrates, because it is an essential piece of the rhetorical puzzle. It helps speakers address their audience appropriately in order to obtain the response they desire from them. Although some critics believe that kairos is an impossible concept to attain because meaning is limitless, there are many real life examples in which it has been successfully utilized. In …show more content…
It asks rhetoricians to confirm that “the time, the circumstances, and the intellectual and ideological climate are right,” and relevant to the content they will express (Covino 7). William Covino also states that speakers must “consider the timeliness and suitability for the particular situation of any text they might produce” (7). Kairos forces speakers and creators of texts to consider the time period they are speaking in, and to ask whether the circumstances within that time are somehow related to what they are addressing in order to effectively convey their ideas. Essentially, it requires one to ask: Is my information relevant to our current situation and the circumstances revolving around our time? Additionally, while a certain set of information may be appropriate for one group of people, it may not apply to another. If one attempts to address an audience with information that is not specifically relevant to them, the speaker will not receive the response he or she is seeking from that particular audience. Therefore, kairos requires strict attention to the said and unsaid needs of an …show more content…
In this sense, kairos can be perceived as simply a response to a situation, in which one “confront[s] the contingent elements of [his or her] situation as [it] unfolds” (Poulakos 40). Kairos is dependent upon specific time frames and addresses an audience “as they are and where they are” (Poulakos 43). The concept is reminiscent of the Latin terms “carpe diem,” which urges people to seize the day or moment. In order to apply kairos, one must capture the essence of the present time in whatever form they are communicating, whether it be verbally or written
According to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, kairos is defined as “a time when conditions are right for the accomplishment of a crucial action: the opportune and decisive moment.” The Greek term has been an important subject within the scope of rhetoric since ancient times, mentioned by philosophers and rhetoricians such as Socrates, because it is an essential piece of the rhetorical puzzle. It helps speakers address their audience appropriately in order to obtain the response they desire from them. Although some critics believe that kairos is an impossible concept to attain because meaning is limitless, there are many real life examples in which it has been successfully utilized. In …show more content…
It asks rhetoricians to confirm that “the time, the circumstances, and the intellectual and ideological climate are right,” and relevant to the content they will express (Covino 7). William Covino also states that speakers must “consider the timeliness and suitability for the particular situation of any text they might produce” (7). Kairos forces speakers and creators of texts to consider the time period they are speaking in, and to ask whether the circumstances within that time are somehow related to what they are addressing in order to effectively convey their ideas. Essentially, it requires one to ask: Is my information relevant to our current situation and the circumstances revolving around our time? Additionally, while a certain set of information may be appropriate for one group of people, it may not apply to another. If one attempts to address an audience with information that is not specifically relevant to them, the speaker will not receive the response he or she is seeking from that particular audience. Therefore, kairos requires strict attention to the said and unsaid needs of an …show more content…
In this sense, kairos can be perceived as simply a response to a situation, in which one “confront[s] the contingent elements of [his or her] situation as [it] unfolds” (Poulakos 40). Kairos is dependent upon specific time frames and addresses an audience “as they are and where they are” (Poulakos 43). The concept is reminiscent of the Latin terms “carpe diem,” which urges people to seize the day or moment. In order to apply kairos, one must capture the essence of the present time in whatever form they are communicating, whether it be verbally or written