Page "Rhetoric" Paragraph 6

Aristotle both redeemed rhetoric from his teacher and narrowed its focus by defining three genres of rhetoric — deliberative, forensic or judicial, and epideictic.

Yet, even as he provided order to existing rhetorical theories, Aristotle extended the definition of rhetoric, calling it the ability to identify the appropriate means of persuasion in a given situation, thereby making rhetoric applicable to all fields, not just politics.

When one considers that rhetoric included torture ( it IS persuasive, and was accepted in forensics in the West until very recently ), it is clear that rhetoric cannot be viewed only in academic terms.

However, the enthymeme based upon logic ( especially, based upon the syllogism ) was viewed as the basis of rhetoric.

However, since the time of Aristotle, logic has also changed, for example, Modal logic has undergone a major development which also modifies rhetoric.

Yet, Aristotle also outlined generic constraints that focused the rhetorical art squarely within the domain of public political practice.

He restricted rhetoric to the domain of the contingent or probable: those matters that admit multiple legitimate opinions or arguments.