Rhetoric In Jay Heinrichs 'Thank You For Arguing'

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In Thank You for Arguing, Jay Heinrichs introduces readers to the art of rhetoric. He explains how to argue, syncrisis, and argumentum ad fortiori. When arguing, people should use the future tense, as it is “the most productive.” Future tense is best because it offers both choices and decisions. Syncrisis is the next major component to understanding rhetoric. Syncrisis is defined as: “a figure that reframes an argument by redefining it.” Syncrisis is vital to some form of rhetoric because it allows you to alter the way an argument is going. By saying “Not manipulation- instruction” one can change the argument from one sounding harsh to an argument that seems like it will benefit the other party (the instruction). Heinrichs further introduces us to the rhetoric by explaining what argumentum ad fortiori is: “if something works the hard way, it’s more likely to work the easy way.” For example, if a customer were to like Brand X, I’ll call it, and not use any other brand until Brand W comes along, people would be more likely to buy Brand W because the stubbornly loyal customer switched to it. The syncrisis then allows people to bandwagon onto supporting your position. Next, we are introduced to the …show more content…
Demonstrative rhetoric deals with the present tense. When any argument involving values comes up, it is demonstrative. This type of rhetoric also deals making choices and forming or ending relationships with others. The second type of rhetoric is forensic, which deals with the past tense. Forensic rhetoric is responsible for establishing guilt and doling out punishments, a great tool for lawyers and cops. The third type of rhetoric is deliberative, dealing with the future tense. Deliberative rhetoric is the rhetoric of choices and decision making. Without deliberative rhetoric, according to Heinrichs, is the key to
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