RHET 1001 · Classical Rhetoric: The Art of Persuasion from Athens to Rome

Led by Demosthenes Simulacrum

Classical rhetoric from the three appeals through invention, arrangement, style, Greek oratory, and Roman systematisation.

1. Module 1

   The Three Appeals: Logos, Ethos, and Pathos

   Led by Demosthenes Simulacrum

   The question

   Aristotle's Rhetoric identifies three modes of persuasion. Logos: the argument itself — its logical structure, its evidence, its reasoning. Ethos: the character of the speaker — their credibility, their authority, their perceived trustworthiness. Pathos: the emotional state of the audience — fear, anger, pity, hope. Every act of persuasion deploys all three, but the balance varies.

   Outcome

   The student can describe the key concepts of this module and apply them to real-world examples. (The Three Appeals)

   Sub-units

   1. ○ 1.1 Logos: The Appeal to Reason and Evidence Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   2. ○ 1.2 Ethos: Character, Credibility, and the Construction of Trust Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   3. ○ 1.3 Pathos: Emotion as a Legitimate Mode of Persuasion Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   4. ○ 1.4 The Interaction of the Three Appeals: When They Reinforce and When They Conflict Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   5. ○ 1.5 The Dark Side: How Each Appeal Can Be Used to Deceive Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   Begin the course → Print certificate of completion
2. Module 2

   Invention and Arrangement: Finding and Organising Arguments

   Led by Demosthenes Simulacrum

   The question

   The first two of the five canons. Invention (inventio): finding the available means of persuasion — the topics (topoi) are the places where arguments are found (definition, comparison, cause and effect, testimony). Arrangement (dispositio): organising the argument for maximum effect — exordium, narratio, partitio, confirmatio, refutatio, peroratio.

   Outcome

   The student can describe the key concepts of this module and apply them to real-world examples. (Invention and Arrangement)

   Sub-units

   1. ○ 2.1 The Topics: Where Arguments Are Found Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   2. ○ 2.2 The Status System: Identifying the Central Issue Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   3. ○ 2.3 Arrangement: The Six-Part Classical Structure Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   4. ○ 2.4 Adapting Arrangement to Audience and Purpose Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   5. ○ 2.5 Arrangement in the AI Age: How Algorithmic Content Rearranges Argument Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   Open this module → Print certificate of completion
3. Module 3

   Style, Memory, and Delivery: The Craft of Expression

   Led by Demosthenes Simulacrum

   The question

   The final three canons. Style (elocutio): the choice of words, the construction of sentences, and the use of rhetorical figures — metaphor, antithesis, anaphora, chiasmus. Memory (memoria): the ancient art of memorising speeches using the method of loci. Delivery (actio): voice, gesture, and presence.

   Outcome

   The student can describe the key concepts of this module and apply them to real-world examples. (Style, Memory, and Delivery)

   Sub-units

   1. ○ 3.1 The Three Levels of Style: Plain, Middle, and Grand Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   2. ○ 3.2 Rhetorical Figures: Metaphor, Antithesis, Anaphora, and Chiasmus Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   3. ○ 3.3 The Art of Memory: The Method of Loci Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   4. ○ 3.4 Delivery: Voice, Gesture, and the Body as Instrument Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   5. ○ 3.5 Style in Written Communication: From Cicero to the Email Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   Open this module → Print certificate of completion
4. Module 4

   Greek Oratory: Demosthenes, Isocrates, and the Democratic Stage

   Led by Demosthenes Simulacrum

   The question

   The Athenian democracy was a rhetorical culture — policy was decided by speeches in the assembly, guilt and innocence by speeches in the courts. The orator was the most powerful figure in the state. Demosthenes: the greatest forensic and deliberative orator, who rallied Athens against Philip of Macedon. Isocrates: the teacher who shaped rhetoric as an educational programme.

   Outcome

   The student can describe the key concepts of this module and apply them to real-world examples. (Greek Oratory)

   Sub-units

   1. ○ 4.1 The Athenian Assembly: Democracy as Rhetorical Culture Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   2. ○ 4.2 Demosthenes: The Philippics and the Art of Deliberative Oratory Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   3. ○ 4.3 Isocrates: Rhetoric as Education and the Panhellenist Vision Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   4. ○ 4.4 Lysias and the Art of Forensic Oratory Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   5. ○ 4.5 The Sophists: When Rhetoric Became Dangerous Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   Open this module → Print certificate of completion
5. Module 5

   Roman Rhetoric: Cicero, Quintilian, and the Systematisation of the Art

   Led by Demosthenes Simulacrum

   The question

   Rome took Greek rhetoric and systematised it. Cicero: the supreme practitioner and theorist — De Oratore, Brutus, Orator — who argued that the orator must be the most broadly educated person in society. Quintilian: the teacher who wrote the Institutio Oratoria, the most complete ancient textbook of rhetoric — the good orator is a good man speaking well (vir bonus dicendi peritus).

   Outcome

   The student can describe the key concepts of this module and apply them to real-world examples. (Roman Rhetoric)

   Sub-units

   1. ○ 5.1 Cicero: The Orator as the Complete Human Being Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   2. ○ 5.2 De Oratore: The Dialogue on the Ideal Orator Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   3. ○ 5.3 Quintilian and the Institutio Oratoria: The Textbook That Shaped Western Education Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   4. ○ 5.4 The Vir Bonus: The Ethical Dimension of Rhetoric Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   5. ○ 5.5 The Roman Legacy: How Rhetoric Became the Foundation of Western Education Open this unit → ✓ ↻
   Open this module → Print certificate of completion