Rhetoric

Foss defines rhetoric as " the human use of symbols to communicate."(Foss,4)
She further breaks down the definition into three dimensions. "Humans" Foss claims are " the creators", "symbols" are vehicles of rhetoric. Finally the communication is "the purpose of rhetoric".(Foss, 4)

While reading Foss, I was reminded how the power of rhetoric plays a role in ones own life.
When I was a little girl I didn't know who the writer Vaclav Havel was. He was not allowed to publish his "artifacts" in my little communist state of Czechoslovakia.(Foss, 7)
I found out about him in November 1989 , the day of his first public speech after 20 years of silence and imprisonment. He was speaking to a demonstration of young university students.
Havel's art of rhetoric made the crowd of people yearn for change. His daily speeches in Prague's Venceslav Square influenced more students and citizens to show up at demonstrations the next day. This was the start of the Velvet Revolution.
His use of right "symbols", emotions, and his great humble personality made this revolution a peaceful one. Havel was able to mobilize millions of Czechs and Slovaks to non-violent protest against Communist leadership.
His mix of right words and good timing changed him from prisoner to president.

Vaclav Havel's rhetoric became the symbol of my freedom. The emotions of those fall days still live with me. I can here the sound of keys jingling and see the tears of happiness in my father's eyes. If this would be a different speaker, using careless rhetoric, the Velvet Revolution might not have happened. It scares me what I would be writing if it hadn't.



Definitions of Rhetoric :



"...rhetoric is a combination of the science of logic and of the ethical branch of politics..."
( Aristotle.The Art of Rhetoric)

"skill in the effective use of speech" (http://mw1.meriam-webster.com/dictionary/rhetoric)