Ramage and Rhetoric, and what I think I thought of them

After 32 pages of reading, one would think that I should have wrapped my head around the idea of rhetoric. However, one should never assume anything, because I have about ten definitions running through my head of what rhetoric is, or at least what I think it is. But, then again, I guess that is my first problem. Ramage makes a pretty big deal out of pointing out that rhetoric exists as a means of doing many things, but that it doesn't definitively label anything. If I understood anything that I read, rhetoric is 1) unavoidable-we all use it in some way, even when we are trying to NOT use it, 2) practical-much of today's world is circumstantial, so sticking, or trying to stick, to one set of concrete rules/practices is nonsensical, and, 3) confusing-you think you know, but you have no idea.

The Anti-Rhetorical Spokespersona was I think the clearest section of this reading, simply because Ramage took a statement, and explained the opposite, which worked to help me gain an understanding of what rhetoric is and how it functions, however, instead of putting the book down for a while, I figured I'd just get the rest of the assignment done and finish the section--WHAT A MISTAKE!!! After the section that I am intelligent enough to comprehend, he moves on to a bunch of different analogies and metaphors which seemed really creative and fitting to his goal of introducing rhetoric, or at least I think they did.

The hardest part of the metaphors for me was that there was just so much going on. I would get one idea figured out, and then he would move on to his next point, which I would then figure out, but by the time he made the connection between the two ideas, I had already completely forgotten the first one. Plus, he brought up so many amazingly thought provoking concepts, that I would read pages, but not actually pay attention to it because I was so caught up in the concept of a river-does one never step into the same river twice, or is every river you step into the same? Is time constantly moving, or is it consistently still? It's just crazy, I can't figure it out.

Overall, I think I kinda have a slight idea of what is going on, and hopefully another reading will clarify some of the fogginess. I like this book though-I thought it would be just another boring textbook, but Ramage is actually pretty funny, and easy to read. Not conceptually of course, but it feels kinda like he is talking to the reader, not teaching them something, which is a cool writing technique. He's also a smartass, and I like that, too-it's pretty entertaining.

~Amber~