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ED 085 778 CS 500 506

AUTHOR Griffin, Robert A. TITLE The Geometry of Persuasion. INSTITUTION Southern Connecticut. State Coll., New Haven. Dept. of Speech. PUB DATE 70 NOTE 6p. JOURNAL CIT Speech Journal; v7 p37-42 1970

EDRS PRICE MF-$0.65 HC-$3.29 DESCRIPTORS Communication (Thought Transfer); *Communication Skills; Educational Philosophy; *Ethical Values; Ethics; *Information Theory; Logic; Persuasive Discourse; *Platonic Criticism; Platonism; ; *Speech Instruction IDENTIFIERS

ABSTRACT Questions raised by contemporary communication teachers about educational program standards and goals have foundation in the classic rhetorical controversy between and the Sophists. Sophistic instruction in ancient Greece centered around techniques of oral persuasion, and the methods were attacked by Plato because they emphasized skills over truth and ethics. Plato criticized the Sophists' epistemology because their rhetoric was not based on the highest intellectual forms, mathematics and dialectics. Also, Plato claimed that the Sophists did not demonstrate a sound ethical system. Finally, Sophistic rhetoric lacked proper style. Emphases of modern communication studies into cognitive and behavioral bases for communication theories reflect the concerns of Plato. Further, as communication instruction becomes more sensitive to social, cultural, and moral values, it tends more and more to conform to Plato's ethical standards. Despite new arts and systems, the modern communications theorist is still aware of Plato's commitments to truth, aesthetics, and ethical purpose. (RN)

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U S. DEPAR MENT OF HEALTH, EDUC..T ON 8 WELFARE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRO DUCE() EXACTLY AS RECEIVED A POA' 7.E PERSON OR ORGANIZAI ION ORIGIN Speech Journal AT 'No IT POINTS OR VIEW OR OPINIONS STATED 00 NOT NECESSARILY REDRE Volume VII 1970 SENT OFFICIAL NAT1O,AL INSTITUTE OF EDUCAT4oN POSITION OR POLICY Published by the Department of; Speech Southern Conn. State College New Hayen, Conn. the ometry of persuasion by Robert A. Griffin

What is Plato's case against the Sophists' Who were theSophists?A prejudice epistemology, ethics, and rhetoric style? An stemming frompre-Socraticthinkingto analysis of his indictment is suggestive for the present day easily identifies the term the improvement ofNITT C12tphilosophical "" with the negative connotations studies related lo comm nical o ns practice. of "sophistry," which refers to a smooth manipulation of words to convince the in- Current. literature on communications em- nocent that lies are true, and that the worse phasizes principles in seven different areas, is the better cause. Actually.' a Sophist in ranging from public address and discussion ancient Greece was simply a school teacher. to the dramatic arts. But what real princi- Many of the complaints leveled against the ples are demonstrated? It seems like an act Sophists are not greatly different from the of faith to detail voice processes, sociology criticisms leveled against modern teachers of communication, theatre truisms for ed- and modern teaching methods: the children ification,discussion techniques,dictionary are being entertained by literature discus- studies, psycho-linguistics, and compositional sions and dramatic frills instead of receiv- style in the hope that students will be suffic- ing, real training in the essentials; instead iently "snowed" to believe some principle of individual initiative and personal earning or principles actually had been presented power, children are being taught to support through the methods and skills inculcated. progressivism and socialisticwelfare-stat- Taking the rhetoricians at face value, any- ism; patriotism is being weakened, and chil- thing remotelyresemblinga general princi- dren are permitted to question the perennial ple of science or art is rather proclaimed truths of American heritage and foreign than shown in the texts. policy. The ancient complaints have a fa- And what of goals? Here again the com- miliar ring. monly assumed goal is persuasion, or action, The Sophist's instruction was pre-emi- l3ux persuasion, or action, is the means for iently education in oral persuasion. Under achieving some higher end, it is not usually the guidancie of the tutor, a Greek youth was thought to be asubsittite for high mor- to acquire a knowledge of vocabulary and ality. Moreover, the padding of high pres- syntax; he was to learn the balanced use of sure salesmanship into a motivated sequence body and gesture; he was to acquire skill in method leaves many students with the im- voice variety and projection ;finally, he was pressi'm that speech teachers believe manip- to weld all these talents into effective, rhe- ulation is superior to ethical purpose.' torical persuasion for use in the law courts, ingroup instructionofotherAthenian In brief, certain crucial questions must be youths, in the public assembly, or in the the- confronted by language instructors if they atre. The student had to become knowledge- hope to justify their programs in the future. able in a number of fields. What are the real principles of communica- tion? What are standards and goals fur- In his doctoral dissertation recently ap- thered by communication studies? Is there proved and published at Goettingen, Ger- a correlation between philosophical objec- many, Professor George IL Wikramanayake tives and speech instruction? Can assumed of Ghana, Africa, has stated the problem correlations be evaluatedproperly? Such this way: Plato argues that the Rhetors and questions are not altogether new. They are Sophists have no knowledge of what is just. some of the most significant points in Plato's Yet in the sense of what is lawful, a-speaker case against the Sophists. The possibility might very well possess a knoWledge of what suggested here is that the controversy be- is just. What is the explanation? tween Plato and the Sophists may have some Again. Plato criticizes the Rhetors and educational implications for contemporary Sophists for not aiming at the good. But a speech instruction. speakerinthe assembly could urge the

37 adoption of a in which he believed would In order that a philosophical orator of thle be better under the circumstances. Certainly Platonic tradition knowlthe manner in which Socrates or Platointhe some situation definitions are to be formulated. Plato elab- would not have been likely, to deliver lec- orates a theory of cognitkm. To the modern tures on ethics when the as'embly was de- temper in.Americathis approach.. tothe liberating on a particular course of action problem seems strange: but Plato. did not to be followed or rejected. Like the Rhetors live in the United States where philosophy and Sophists. Plato and Socrates could only and rhetoric are easily dividedinto two show the most probable and beneficial pol- armed camps. To him there was nothing; at icy under the circumstances.' allunusualinsearching out adialectical foundation for persuasion. In turn, there is Professor Wikramanayake's solution. ably little hope of comprehending Plato's pro- supported by his research in classical lan- posals for the reform of rhetoric short of guages.isthatwhen Platoaccusesthe understanding his theory of cognition and Rhetors and Sophists of speaking without the Form of the Good.' knowledge. and of being indifTerenttoa knowledge of what is good and true, he has As outlined in book six of The Republic, in mind his own knowledge of forms. Truly. Plato's divided line theory separates know- if there is one characteristic which all the ledge proportionally into two unequal sec- Sophists had in common. itis that none of tions. '[lie one, receiving the smaller area, them knew Plato's doctrine of Forms, and pertains to the images and objects of the none of them seem to have been acquainted senses. The other, receiving the larger area, with Plato's Form of the Good.' pertains to the forms of the intellect and of reason. Fly degrees of abstraction, an object A historical condition which served to re- of the senses mcives, through the intellect and inforce Plato's biased accounts was a con- receives a final form in human reason. Ana- servative reaction which setin at Athens 16g,ously, the areas of learning also receive beginning with the reign of the Thirty Ty- a ranking.Poetry, art, and drama. which rants at the end of the Pelopennesian War. make the greatest use of imagery and illu- During this period most of the Sophists sion, receive the lowest position. Yet they were put out of business. and their writings are not belittled; only in the arts does hu- were burned. Consequently, nothing further man reason attain its complete fruition! An is known about the encyclopedic instructions intermediary position on the line is assigned of Protagoras, Gorgias. Thrasymachus. and to composition and rhetoric, which make use Prodicus.Yet,asProfessor Broudy has of the intellect and the senses. The ideal sci- shown in his history of educational methods, ences of mathematics and dialectic, depend- the Sophists;laidthe foundations oflin- ing on reason for their development, receive guistic analysis insemantics, syntax, and the top position. Other sciences, depending pragmatics. Their work would compare quite on their needfor sensory evidence e.g. favorably with similar projects today.' physics and biology tend to be classified Throughout his dialogues, Plato .argues with the arts. The implication of Plato's that mere opinion shuffling: about sense-data theory of cognitive forms is that rhetoric is no cognitive basis for persuasion. Perusa- should derive her principles and definitions sion needs the discovery of truth through from the insights of mathematics and dia- a knowledge of really basic, general princi- lectics. Only in this way is rhetorical persua- ples. This may be called the inner critique sion to serve the interests of knowledge and of rhetoric; the outer critique, detailed in truth, the Form of the Good. All else is but the Phaedros, finds that haphazard, super- comical cookery. ficial oratory is a mere playing with words. In addition to lacking basic principles of Lofty rhetorical composition should be char- epistemology, the Sophists were indicted for acterized by strong organization, excellence their failure to demonstrate a sound ethic. of planning, and an elevated. spiritual style in the case of Gorgias, Plato argues that the gained through use of dramatic figures of Sophist tends to dismiss any sense of serious speech, Such aesthetic excellenceismost moral purpose by mere dependence on an- possible if the writer takes the time to de- tithesis and bombast. Against Lysias, in the fine his terms, classify his subject. and an- Phaednis, Plato complains that the ti'eat- alyze the areas to be covered in the oration. ment of "love"isclever, but superficial.

38 Again, depth and conceptual structure are of movement and tresture was less persua- lacking. In the Rtp/Mir, Plato finds that sive than farcical. Most of ;dl. Sophist com- Thrasymachus's doctrine, "might isright," positions had no elegant organization and is opposed to the development of good form, arrangement. The speech of Lysias in the of character. Such aview. argues Plato, Pharr? rusis intended to illustrate the de- would honor survival and expediency with fects of such compositions. "Love" is...the the title of "principle." In the Pro 'agoras, theme, but the Sophist's declamation pro- as well as in the tifroo, Plato contends that claims only the love of one human for an- even when the greatest Sophists purport to other. The subjectisnotanalyzed. The teach moral ideals, they do not know what points seem to be jumbled. Such efforts, they are about, for the 0.f nobility is complained Plato. were not genuine rhetor- ingrained within the soul.A characterless icalproductions. A better way must be person cannot be given a form of virtue. available. Protagoras's work is an optimistic waste of time. The dilemma of the Sophists, accord- The changes Plato suggests would affect ing to Plato, is that they neither care about rhetorical organization and the plan of in- the virtue of nobility nor have a knowledge terpretation. The organization required def- of what they are doing. Obviously, then, the inition and analysis of the subject in the in- only alternative Plato has to offer for the troduction.Inthis way clarity would be justification of rhetorical studies is to learn preserved. and the listeners could feel as- first the Platonic forms of knowledge and to sured they were being directed along a well inquire into the geometry of the soul. marked path. The analysis should be accom- . panied by explanation. The problem for Plato seems to have been one of defining objective criteria for dia- Now an artistic explanation in any Pla- lectics, the arts. and poetry. The criteria tonic discourse should cover three areas of would have to be independent of shifting interpretation :the literal, the moral, and sense-date and the relativeconditions of the dramatically allegorical.The last type perception. Pursuing a mode] of mathemat- of interpretation is to be given the form of ical analysis, Plato reduced problems by ab- a myth. Two dialogues which make elabo- straction and formal definition to natures, rate use of interpretation levels areThe Re- classes, virtual axiom-sets, and finally rested public and the Phocdrus. The cave allegory his case for objectivity on an undefined prin- of the former is fairly well known ; the dis- ciple of unity. But the principle of infinity course on love, which keynotes the latter, is was to be envisioned rather than employed. less well known. According to this discourse, The device most characteristically used for love has three degrees: physical attraction, this analysis was that of logical indentity. love of man and learning. and love of Zeus. a concept \Odell is evident in mathematical Analogously. compositions in thePhacdrus equalities. Justice, for example, could be as- fail at the first two levels, and Socrates feels sured throughout the ideal state if all the impelledto appease divine wrath by his parts and effects were in a relation of iden- final discourse, which must comprehend the tity to the whole state. The educator who two former levels and ascend into the realms trained speech teachers had a personal com- of myth. Socrates is made to describe the mitment tothe axioms of virtue; conse- ideal orator as a driver of a chariot which quently, he had every reason to expect that is being flown by the horses of reason and the moral effects exhibited in the conduct of passion along a path toward the sun of his pupils would be identical with his own Truth. The orator who can hold the white and with those ofThe Republic.That such and blaek horses in a unified effort toward a hope was at best an ideal possibility with- the ethicalidealwillbest ,accomplish his out. any apodicticcharacter for rational purpose. A controlled flight of the imagina- thinking was the greater contribution of tion demonstrates the mastery of earthly, Aristotle. heavenly. and -solar exposition. The third point in Plato's indictment of InThe Clouds,(Benjamin Rogers transl.) Sophist rhetoric. was its actual lack of Style. a parody of Aristophanes on the Socratic Vocal bombast for its own:enjoyment was philosophy of education.Socratesispic- not good taste. Aggressive theatrical display turedina mood ofquiet.: contemplation

39 while suspended in a basket between heaven tonicis fighting a rear-guard action. The and earth. His naive, rustic inquirer dis- Rai rd- knower school of dynamic communi- tuirbs the contemplation with a banging. at cations. which provides much leadership in the house entrance. The result is a Maieutic mid-western America. affirms that no theory miscarriage. Certainly the Socratic-Platonic of general communicatiens has a sound basis mode of thinking has had its salutary effects without a commitment to principles of gen- both for western culture and for contem- eral concern in the pluralistic,. human uni- poraryphilosophyandcommunications. verse. For both immediate and Iong-range George Boole and Gott loh Frege are some purposes. therefore, general communications of the great Platonists of modern philoso- study emphasizes that communicators must phy and systems research. Nevertheless. the develop character,personalresponsibility, point of Aristophanes is well taken. Highly and a sensitivity to the values and worth of elaborate, over-specialized models for com- others affected by any communication proc- munications control have a way of inviting ess. For instance, this view implies that the their own cogitational miscarriages. use of communication systems and processes Con the manipulative exploitation of people, Modern communicationstudies empha- especially when communications is devoted sizes the need toresearch,the behavioral to the support of war for reinforcing bet- and cognitive bases for sound communica- ter business than usual, is ethically wrong. tions theory. On this point they are in agree- The use of communication systems and proc- ment with Plato.' The innovations of Plato esses for the encouragement of general wel- are currently following the lines of psycho- fare. for the furtherance of human culture logical studies. information 'theory, and au- and art, and for the pursuit of human truth dience analysis with detailed research on 1hrough scientific research, dialectical dis- problems of sensation, perception, attention, cussion. symposiums. and real debates on and -onduct.Such instructionis comple- alternatives of policy is ethically good. Only menti.!(1 by educationillthe principles of the latter view develops responsible leader- problen, solving, analysis, syllogistic reason- ship. ing. and statistics. Once again, the develop- ment of statistical research into such areas The question of correlating principles and. wlonetics, oral interpretation, and audi- objectives through soundinstruction has en- analysis has permitted a greater- pre- been a main burden of modern communica- cis; in the treatment of behavioral prin- tions teaching.Inadditiontotheolder, ciple:in communication. The Truth as any classical models of rhetorical and poetic con- ultimate settlement of opinion has by no sents. much' new information has been ac- means been achieved, but the total body of cumulated on the adaptability of communi- accumulated knowledge in pursuit of Truth cation contexts for problem-solving discus- is much greater today than was the case in sions for oral interpretation, and for crea- Plato's time. Modern communications does tive dramatics in the public schools. Growth owe much ofits concern and accomplish- needs and ethical goals are bein met by an ment to the disturbing influences of Plato. increasingly larger body of artistic meth- ods, models, skills, and media. Pas.ing from the problem of meaningful, cognitive principles ofpersuasion tothe Plato's concern for mathematical certainty question of ethical goals one may note that ill all the social effects communicated within the ideal just state was one-sided. Human contemporary communication teaching and dynamic cannot be so limited. To argue that teacher preparationisbecoming increas- a lack of effect is due to the tragic formless- ingly sensitive to values .social, cultural, ness in the material world is insufficient; religious, moral, and aesthetic. Thinking on such a view considers material and experi- this topic tends to follow two ancient lines: ence in a passive sense which ignores the relativism, on the one hand, and a convic- material's own dynamic potential.Plato's tion of general human worth on the other. system lends itself admirably to programmed The relativist view .commonly becomes ex- learning, but the genuine dynamics of com- pressed as an emphasis on values of western munication may be more gestaltist in nature. civilization. But this perspective contains a cynical denial of general human worth and Again. modern communication principles concern. At present, this philosophy of rhe- proceed according to functional, pragmatic

40 concepts. On this basis, Plato's assertions must buildheredificeon more Jealistic ablut knowledge and virtue seem quite ar- foundations. General communications and bitrary. To abstract from perceptual object the work of preparing today's speech teach- to general form, and then again to cognitive ers must be capable of comprehending re- classes still more inclusive and superior to search and instruction based on empirical the forms of the understanding seems very analyses. trends, the evaluation of prob- enlightening. What is shown ? The, cognitive able consequences. postulates, truth axioms, and Form Of the. One may comparePlato'simaginative Good thus abstracted seem more solid than search for basic prin'c'iples, for elegant form the shifting shadows of appearing objects. and style and- for, ethicalideals derived Are they? Isit not arbitrary to designate from the Form 'of the Good to taldng all air- an abstracted form as "knowledge" in order plane ride in order to visit a friend in the todiscriminateagainstanasymmetrical next block. Unless one simply enjoys riding perceptual experience as unworthy art or ill airplanes. the effort seems hardly m.opor- illusiveimagery'? Pragmastist approaches tionalto the end achieved. More recent, may not have established the goal or Truth, functional concepts of aesthetic experience but the functional concern for .experience- find the baroque character of the Platonic able reality through perceived series ef- effortcurious or amusing. Even modern fects has treated knowledge and art in an mathematicshascome to favor the opera- apparently far more creative manner. tional attitude of Archimedes, to Plato's ma- Then it is indeed gratifying to learn that jestic system of intellectualstultification." rhetoric receives her axioms and virtuous Surely the study of oral persuasion has yet character from self-evident statements ba-ged much to learn in matters of efficiency and on an undefined principle of unity. Is Ibis economy of work. The future of communica- really so? or does Plato construct his phi- tions may not be a fair copy of her grand losophy on the realities of persuasion by flightill the past, but her work promises to padding? Certainly the elaborate, ornate or- be more functionally elegant told productive ation which concludes the Ph(iedcus smacks for public work. ofelocutionism.Currentcommunications But the work of communications cannot practice also supports the position that the escape the marks of her philosophical com- mode of conummication should be suited to bat with Plato. However he may develop therequirementsofthesituation.The new arts and IleW symbol systems, a per- speech is for the assembly, not the assembly son becomes increasingly conscious of the for the speech. To adhere rigidly to the clas- lack of neutrality in communications sys- sical lines required by Plato for full-orbed tems. Much current writing to the contrary, oratory is to stress pomposity at the expense the trulyphilosophical communicator be- of efficiency and adaptability. Ultimately, comes increasingly aware that in the proc- as Quintino!" contended. one could counter esses of symbol selection,in organization, the reduction of rhetoric[ to philosophy by and in arrangement, he is constantly con- the reduction -of dialectics to a science of frontedbycommitmentstotheoretical general communication, which then could be truths, to aesthetically pleasing designs, and subject to evaluation through the criteria to ethical direction and purpose. A real sci- of possible public service. The latter pro- ence of conmumications stillrequires that posal might at least avoid the multiplication her servants honor their commitment to of nebulous classes for the sake of' empty do- Truth, Beauty, and the Good. mains. It might also prove to be more flex- ible and genuinely productive. A sense exists in which the theorizing of 'Alan Monroe. Principles and Types of Speech Plato is basically unhistorical. The process ( New York, 11149) of abstraction raised to the level of meta- 'George II. Wikramanayake. Das Verhoellnis von physics represents a flight from spatio-tem- Philosophic unit leheforik he Pluton and A ristoldes: text inEInglish(Goo...611p.m. Germany. 1I-1(I51,43- poral processes to an unhistorical restin Iii.cf.alsoSir Arthur Pickard-Canthridge, The self-evident axioms and forms. Then to as- Pestials of Dio»ysinsof,ihens sert the existence of these classes fromit 'Ibid.. 6-47. Harry S. Broudv. "Historic Exem- pre-existent eternity is. of course, the ulti- plars of Teachinv ethnd.' Gage, Handbook mate test!Modern communications work nl Rescotich on Teachingi Chicago, 11103 ) ,1-3.

41 'ibid.. 52. 150.17(1-171. Theory of Rhetoric.- rtcrly oror(rnol of Speech. (February. 1 'JC,(;) , 'A. Craig Baird and Franklin11. Knower. Gen- . Sprioh.3rd edi:ion( New York.196:1).Otis lino Wang. Troce:;s, and Existence in)lathe- 11. 'Wal:er. "On Views of Rhetoric, Whet1-Jr Con- nia:ies.- in rittthe Formiatiun. O mohe... serv:a:yorProe-rensive. (,to? reedy.16?( nut of :r.c.ed. Y. Bar-Mile] etal.(Jerusalem, P.,(i1). Sprerf, X LI N111.. ,rember 1:1(%1).375. Wayne E. Howard Eves. t,,the His- Brock riede, 'Toward a Contemporary Aristotelian tory of 310h( metirs4, New York. 1913.11, Si -85.

PROFILE OF ROBERT GRIFFIN University. During the period 1955-58, Dr. Griffin received a Philosophy scholarship at The Georg-Wilhelm-Augusta University at Gottingen, Germany. Dr. Griffin will serve as a graduate pro- fessor onthe new Master's program in Speech Communication at Southern Connect- icut State College. At the present time, he is a member of the Executive Board of the Speech Association of Connecticut and was Editor of its Newsletter from 1968-69. He is currently the Director of the Speech As- sociationof.Connecticut's Research Com- mittee. Professor Griffinisa member of the Speech Association of Connecticut, the Speech Association of the Eastern States, the New England Speech Association, and the Speech Association of America. In addition to his faculty duties, Dr. Grif- fin is a Creative Dramatics Consultant for the Scranton Child and Safety Center Grant Program in New Haven, Connecticut; was the former Robert F. Kennedy Campaign Chairman, currently the Kennedy Action Corps Chairman in Cheshire, Connecticut; and the founding member, candidate, and platform writer for the Coalition Party in Cheshire, 1969. Robert Griffin is Assistant Professor of Professor Griffin has published frequently Speech at Southern Connecticut State Col- in theConnecticut Renewand has worked lege. He received his Th. B. from Malone on two books which will be publishedin College, his B. A. from Geneva College, his 1970, "Das Ewige Vestalische, A Burnacini B. D. from Pittsburgh-Xenia Seminary, and Opera Folio," and "High Baroque Theatre his M. A. and Ph. D. from The Ohio State and Culture in Vienna."

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