The History and Theory of Rhetoric: An Introduction

by James A. Herrick

By tracing the traditional progression of rhetoric from the Greek Sophists to contemporary theorists, The History and Theory of Rhetoric illustrates how persuasive public discourse performs essential social functions and shapes our daily worlds. Students gain a conceptual framework for evaluating and practicing persuasive writing and speaking in a wide range of settings and in both written and visual media. This new 6th edition includes greater attention to non-Western studies, as well as contemporary developments such as the rhetoric of science, feminist rhetoric, the rhetoric of display, and comparative rhetoric. Known for its clear writing style and contemporary examples throughout, The History and Theory of Rhetoric emphasizes the relevance of rhetoric to today’s students.

Genres: Nonfiction, Textbooks, History, School, Philosophy

330 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1996

Reviews

[Kristy Marquez]

LONG WINDED and BORING!! I didn't give it a 1 star because ultimately it's educational, but could they have made this topic any harder to read!!!! When are they going to understand that you don't have to write 50 pages to say what you can say in 30 in an entertaining and more efficient, which is ultimately more educational way.

I have never enjoyed textbooks that insist on doing this. I get it, it's a textbook, I'm not expecting a great novel or even an interesting book, but I have read manuals that are clearer and more entertaining than this. Rhetoric is a fascinating subject, but this book has made it hard to enjoy this class.

[Brent Pinkall]

Not as good as Kennedy's Classical Rhetoric and Its Christian and Secular Tradition. Herrick's treatment of rhetoric during the classical period is oversimplified and doesn't even address certain key elements of rhetorical education such as progymnasmata. His treatment of rhetoric during the Middle Ages is also sparse. But he covers more ground than Kennedy in the Renaissance and modern periods. This book is less helpful as an introduction to rhetorical theory and more helpful as a history of rhetoric.

[Joel Everett]

A good, but basic, overview to the history and theory of rhetoric as practiced from the Ancient Greeks to the end of the Twentieth Century; the end-of-chapter glossaries are helpful. A helpful precursor to more in-depth study of individual rhetoricians.

[Destinee Sims]

Had it assigned for a graduate rhetorical theory class. I found it very informative, although it wasn’t the most interesting read. I wish more time had been spent explaining non-white rhetorical theories though.

[Mandy]

Interesting for a text book.

[Melissa]

Read this for a rhetoric class and I found it informational, but tedious.

[AlfazFarosh]

Wish I had access to the complete book, but the available part of the rhetoric theory deserves 2 stars
And it's because of the nature of rhetoric.

[Phillip]

This is a really complete and interesting textbook on rhetoric, but it is also just a textbook. Herrick does a good job surveying a wide range of rhetorical thought from the ancient Greeks to Foucault and Derrida.
The one major concern I have with the textbook is that it brings together a bunch of things that aren't directly rhetorical theory, including things like Habermas' public sphere theory and Foucault's analysis of discourse and power. These clearly have connections to rhetoric, but I feel like there is a distinction between linguistic theory at large and rhetoric specifically, though I might have trouble defining that distinction.

[Steven]

Nice, simplistic history of rhetoric with practical explanations. After having read parts of The Rhetorical Tradition, which contains many of the primary texts that Herrick decodes, I am not ashamed to say that translators and the original authors of rhetorical theory have a poor sense of prose.

This type of information at least is understandable and pragmatic in its definitions.

[James Zhan]

A required book for my rhetoric course. Herrick covered a lot of the history and theories of rhetoric, ranging from ancient Greek to the modern times. However, as comprehensive as it is, I did not have a great time reading it, as it was quite dry and tedious. I would probably not read it if it was not required for a course.

[Dan Richards]

Great book for a 200- or 300-level introduction to rhetoric course. The downside is that you still have to supplement with primary texts, but Herrick's overview, while truncated in some spots that many will have problems with, is well-informed by rhetorical scholarship in a way that allows students an opportunity to follow the breadcrumbs for more in-depth research projects.

[Jason]

An excellent overview and historical survey of rhetoric.
Just the introductory section was so useful to me I ended up using it as the basis of a large component of my English Comp. class.
I'm reading it for the third time now.

[Abby]

good overview of the topic, but this book is a prime example of over editing. seriously, the sentences have been so obviously overwrought that the whole thing ends up sounding like it was written for 5th graders.

[Chris]

Probably the best textbook I've ever read. Clear, concise, and simple enough to understand. The author took 2,600 years of Rhetorical theory and made it available and easily accessible to a modern audience.

[Andrew Eick]

This was the textbook used for my introduction to rhetoric survey course and I still flip through it now and then for clarification. an excellent first source for anyone interested in the study of rhetoric.

[William]

Excellent introduction to the history and development of rhetoric.

[Randy Hulshizer]

A basic, and rather naive, introduction to rhetoric.

[Jon]

Very informative

[Jam]

This is for class.

[Kareena]

Read this for a Professional Writing course. Read whatever chapters were required