Rhetoric and Novation

THE LABEL OF RHETORIC is generally used to stamp a speech as non-persuasive, as a non-event, whereas a persuasive speech is spoken of as no mere rhetoric. After Aschines's performance, everyone agreed that he spoke very well; after Demosthenes's, the Athenians were eager to fight against Philip. This, of course, does not mean Demosthenes did not use rhetorical devices. But since he won deep approval, everyone forgot about mere skillfulness; successful rhetoric seems to be characterized by its invisibility or, as Clifford Geertz puts it, by its thinness.' If an unsuccessful speech is a non-event, then success, or rhetorical achievement should be considered as an event, not simply the mastering of trite techniques. But we are faced directly with a paradox: how can we conceive an invisible event? Geertz's thinness aptly describes the common sense that rules traditional communities. But in modern society, where changes of ideas and opinions are officially recognized, thinness is quite paradoxical. On the one hand, it is possible to describe successful speeches as creating something new (Demosthenes's speeches are historical events in themselves; after he has spoken, nothing in Athens can go on as before). But on the other hand, such a novelty is constantly overlooked or unnoticed

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