Letters Remain

Tag: rhetoric

  • Political Rhetoric and Speechwriter ‘Tricks’

    How the art of political rhetoric is regarded differently in Britain and America: In the US, the act of speechwriting has gained an almost mythical status. As keepers of the president’s words, the speechwriters are at the centre of government and are objects of fascination. It is a little different in Westminster. There are no…

  • Story Types for Speeches (and TV)

    Each and every time I begin to structure a speech or presentation I consider which ‘story type’ to use (if it is suitable at all). Not being particularly well-versed in these, I recently came across a couple of useful resources. First, Nick Morgan’s description of the five “basic stories that Western culture has to make…

  • Teaching Children to Argue

    With a primer on each of the “three basic tools of argument” (logos, ethos and pathos), Jay Heinrichs gives a cogent argument for why you should teach your children to argue. I had long equated arguing with fighting, but in rhetoric they are very different things. An argument is good; a fight is not. Whereas…