Enthymeme

Central to rhetorical theory, the enthymeme is most often defined as a truncated syllogism. Suppressing a premise that the audience already knows, this rhetorical device relies on the audience to fill in the missing information, thereby making the argument more persuasive. James Fredal argues that this view of the enthymeme is wrong. Presenting a new exegesis of Aristotle and classic texts of Attic oratory, Fredal shows that the standard reading of Aristotle’s enthymeme is inaccurate—and that Aristotle himself distorts what enthymemes are and how they work.From close analysis of the Rhetoric, Topics, and Analytics, Fredal finds that Aristotle’s enthymeme is, in fact, not syllogistic and is different from the enthymeme as it was used by Attic orators such as Lysias and Isaeus. Fredal argues that the enthymeme, as it was originally understood and used, is a technique of storytelling, primarily forensic storytelling, aimed at eliciting from the audience an inference about a narrative. According to Fredal, narrative rather than formal logic is the seedbed of the enthymeme and of rhetoric more broadly.The Enthymeme reassesses a fundamental doctrine of rhetorical instruction, clarifies the viewpoints of the tradition, and presents a new form of rhetoric for further study and use. This groundbreaking book will be welcomed by scholars and students of classical rhetoric, the history of rhetoric, and rhetorical theory as well as communications studies, classical studies, and classical philosophy.

“James Fredal challenges traditional Aristotelian interpretations of the enthymeme as an abstract theoretical concept by examining ‘enthymizing’ as a situational activity occurring within rhetorical narratives of Greek oratory. A provocative and insightful study that compels readers to reconsider long-accepted notions of Hellenic rhetorical theory.”—Richard Leo Enos, author of Greek Rhetoric Before Aristotle, “Fredal’s interdisciplinary approach is impressive, demonstrating currency in fields such as classical rhetoric, formal logic, and legal theory; his treatment of Aristotle—his argument that terms such as syllogism have a general sense rather than the technical sense they acquired later—resonates with contemporary philology.”—P. E. Ojennus, Choice, “The volume offers a valuable account of a key element of Greek rhetorical practice and serves as a worthy reminder of the importance of the insights of the Greeks for our own theory of narrative and vice versa. It invites us to revisit difficult and unresolved issues of the relationships that hold among narrative, rhetorical speech and logic, and how they were regarded in antiquity.”—Owen Goldin, Classical Review

James Fredal is Associate Professor of English at The Ohio State University. He is the author of Rhetorical Action in Ancient Athens: Persuasive Artistry from Solon to Demosthenes.