Leith, a British journalist and writer, offers a no-nonsense introduction to rhetoric for an intelligent, but non-academic audience. He uses both historical and contemporary, real and literary examples to present where western rhetoric comes from and how it has been taught/used over the ages; what the terms of rhetoric are; why different arguments work the way they do and why some arguments work while others don't. The aim of the book is to instill...

Philosophy and rhetoric are both old enemies and old friends. In The Rhetorical Sense of Philosophy, Donald Phillip Verene sets out to shift our understanding of the relationship between philosophy and rhetoric from that of separation to one of close association. He outlines how ancient rhetors focused on the impact of language regardless of truth, ancient philosophers utilized language to test truth; and ultimately, this separation of right reasoning...

Provides tips and ideas on how to write a persuasive speech or paper.

An enhanced edition of the classic writing manual features humorous art by a popular children's book illustrator and New Yorker cover artist, in a volume that provides visual and whimsical embellishments to the original instructive text--Publisher.

A widely admired writer and teacher of writing, Verlyn Klinkenborg now gives us a distillation of that experience in an distinctive book that will help anyone who wants to write, write better, or have a clearer understanding of what it means for them to be writing. Klinkenborg believes that most of our received wisdom about how writing works is not only wrong but an obstacle to our ability to write. Here he sets out to help us unlearn that "wisdom"--about...

Newly famous in the wake of the publication of her groundbreaking Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, Gertrude Stein delivered her Narration lectures to packed audiences at the University of Chicago in 1935. Stein had not been back to her home country since departing for France in 1903, and her remarks reflect on the changes in American culture after thirty years abroad. In Stein's trademark experimental prose, Narration reveals the legendary writer's...

Xing Lu examines language, art, persuasion, and argumentation in ancient China and offers a detailed and authentic account of ancient Chinese rhetorical theories and practices within the society's philosophical, political, cultural, and linguistic contexts. She focuses on the works of five schools of thought and ten well-known Chinese thinkers from Confucius to Han Feizi to the the Later Mohists. Lu identifies seven key Chinese terms pertaining to...

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, one in nine Americans works in sales, meaning that each day more than fifteen million people earn their keep by persuading someone else to make a purchase. The Excellent Persuader has the unique ability to reach sales professionals, sales managers, and organizational leaders at every level. All sales professionals, whether entry-level, veteran, or manager, will be guided through the ART of how to...

Thank You for Arguing is your master class in the art of persuasion, taught by professors ranging from Bart Simpson to Winston Churchill. The time-tested secrets this book discloses include Ciceros three-step strategy for moving an audience to actionas well as Honest Abes Shameless Trick of lowering an audiences expectations by pretending to be unpolished. But its also replete with contemporary techniques such as politicians use of code language to...

America's most influential writing teacher offers an engaging and practical guide to effective short-form writing. In HOW TO WRITE SHORT, Roy Peter Clark turns his attention to the art of painting a thousand pictures with just a few words. Short forms of writing have always existed-from ship logs and telegrams to prayers and haikus. But in this ever-changing Internet age, short-form writing has become an essential skill. Clark covers how to write...