Consider This (Week 3): Aphorisms, Idioms, Maxims, and other Itty Bits of Pithy Wisdom

As we have discussed in class, contemporary rhetoric often concerns itself with the discovery of a truth*, or acting on a truth to persuade an audience to move toward certain action.

Rarely do we have the time or patience to wax philosophical; delivering soliloquies and expounding on complex syllogisms are rarely socially efficient practices. Still, humans are driven to understand their world, their relationships, and any number of other 'truths.' How, then, can we work toward such a lofty aim and still seek and communicate such complex wisdom and knowledge succinctly, cogently, effectively without violating social constraints and norms?

Answer: Clever packaging. Enter the idiom. The aphorism. The Maxim–and any number of other compact, economical, and often colloquial expressions.

Click here for Wikipedia's useful list that classifies different types of sayings.

“Sayings,” considered broadly, are rhetorically rich, often amusing, and can be surprisingly complex for their compactness. Consider,

He that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools. (Confucius)

“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between the lightening and the lightening bug.” (Mark Twain)

“You can be a little ungrammatical if you come from the right part of the country.” (Robert Frost)

“Ya' gotta dance with the one what brung ya'.” (a Southern expression—favored by an old friend of mine)

I don't know with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones. (Albert Einstein)

Never mistake kindness for weakness. (my Dad)

Each of these examples—and just about any other successful aphorism—has a semantic value (what does it mean?) and a rhetorical value (how does it achieve that meaning?). It is the 'how' that interests us as we explore the dynamics of rhetoric.

For this exercise, then, please consider what idioms, aphorisms, or other sayings resonate with you. Choose one of them, and explicate it. First, what does it mean? Then consider how it achieves that meaning; ask yourself

What kind of logic is at work? Inductive? Deductive?

How is the idea presented? Does it rely on humor? A clever turn of phrase? Understatement? Overstatement?

What structures do you notice? Is there repetition? Structures of balance? Substitution? Opposition?

What is unique about the word choices (diction), and what is the effect of those choices?

Finally, is it original? Clichéd? How does that affect its impact?

These are just a few of the things you may consider as you examine your selected saying. Please work up a brief draft of your observations, your explication (including, of course, the saying you've chosen to work with), and bring it to class on Thursday, February 4th. As we begin our focus unit on logos, we'll workshop your drafts and talk more about your findings.

Keep in mind that you will, ultimately, post these brief essays to your blog, so you will be writing for a public audience. You will have until Saturday, February 6th, to post.


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* The classical tradition made a distinction between rhetoric and dialectic, where rhetoric served as the application, craft, or art of discourse; dialectic referred to the process of reasoning , through argumentation, that led to discovery, understanding, or 'truth.' Contemporary rhetoric has evolved to recognize the interdependence of rhetoric and dialectic and, thus, treats them as parts of the same process. That said, even Aristotle described rhetoric as the counterpart to dialectic, so the treatment of rhetoric and dialectic as relating process to craft is nothing new. See the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy's entry 'Aristotle's Rhetoric' for more.