ABSTRACT
This chapter defines the ultimate goal of a speech as the accomplishment of eloquence. It describes eloquence as a quality not so much of the speech but of the experience produced by the speech, an experience defined in terms of the ability to address the particular demands of a situation while also pointing to more universal values, goals, and truths that inspire people to greater thoughts and feelings. It then proposes two methods for producing eloquence. The first method is to structure the speech around a dramatistic symbol that provides a coherent and recognizable narrative form. Often making use of analogical reasoning, a dramatistic symbol draws parallels between a specific exigence and a more familiar character or situation in order to clarify its meaning and establish purpose. The second method is to use one of the major poetic categories of the heroic, the tragic, or the comic in order to try to give an overarching dramatic structure that helps portray characters and plot in a coherent way. The goal of eloquence is to combine all of the previous methods of persuasion into a powerful dramatic telling that advances a prudent judgment while encouraging the audience to look to broader horizons of meaning.
