Page 161 - Gabrijela Kišiček and Igor Ž. Žagar (eds.), What do we know about the world? Rhetorical and argumentative perspectives, Digital Library, Educational Research Institute, Ljubljana 2013
P. 161
rhetoric of crisis: polish parliamentarian
debates on the future of the eu 161
that make them effective in the political discourse. Eventually there are
examples of concrete metaphors used by Polish politicians while describ-
ing the Euro zone crisis.
1. How is the Situation Defined?
The competition of various definitions of situations is the crux of po-
litical action in the democratic system. Parties and politicians convince
citizens that their interpretation of events is accurate and if the diagno-
sis is right then the remedy they propose is also correct. Defining the sit-
uation is the first step in a successful persuasion exercise. We are not con-
cerned solely with the recognition of the factual circumstances of the
speech. What is more important is the significance that the speaker or
the audience attributes to the circumstances.
Rhetoric analysis of the public discourse or the public debate always
requires very good knowledge of the context. As we read in Theaetetus:
“Whatever each city judges to be just and fine, these things in fact are
just and fine for it, so long as it holds these opinions” (Plato, Theaetetus
167 c 4–5). That sentence indicates the significance of the situation defi-
nition in political rhetoric. “There is nothing more elusive than an ob-
vious fact” Sherlock Holmes used to say and it has to be admitted that
it is absolutely true in reference to political life. Explaining what it is
that we see, and what is the name of the things going on, thus imposing
one’s own definition of the situation on other participants of the pub-
lic life, is one of the key activities of politicians. When we think of the
term of situation definition and refer it to a concrete rhetorical situation
a number of necessary elements have to be considered. In rhetoric and
social sciences there are three concepts which seem to be mutually com-
plementing each other. These are: rhetorical situation, definition of situ-
ation and persuasive definition.
What shall we consider a rhetorical situation? In the most concise
approach we mean the context in which a given utterance is presented
and received. “Not the rhetor and not persuasive intent, but the situ-
ation is the source and ground of rhetorical activity” Lloyd Bitzer ex-
plains (1999: 220). It is the situation that defines the way of speaking.
Who the speaker is, what social role he/she plays, the nature of the audi-
ence and the time and place – those are the factors construing the rhe-
torical situation. Thus when we speak of rhetorical situation, we mean
specific historic circumstances. In the analyzed debates that context was
out of necessity created by the economic crisis, that hit the Euro zone,
decisions that the leaders of the EU states took, aiming at the reduction
debates on the future of the eu 161
that make them effective in the political discourse. Eventually there are
examples of concrete metaphors used by Polish politicians while describ-
ing the Euro zone crisis.
1. How is the Situation Defined?
The competition of various definitions of situations is the crux of po-
litical action in the democratic system. Parties and politicians convince
citizens that their interpretation of events is accurate and if the diagno-
sis is right then the remedy they propose is also correct. Defining the sit-
uation is the first step in a successful persuasion exercise. We are not con-
cerned solely with the recognition of the factual circumstances of the
speech. What is more important is the significance that the speaker or
the audience attributes to the circumstances.
Rhetoric analysis of the public discourse or the public debate always
requires very good knowledge of the context. As we read in Theaetetus:
“Whatever each city judges to be just and fine, these things in fact are
just and fine for it, so long as it holds these opinions” (Plato, Theaetetus
167 c 4–5). That sentence indicates the significance of the situation defi-
nition in political rhetoric. “There is nothing more elusive than an ob-
vious fact” Sherlock Holmes used to say and it has to be admitted that
it is absolutely true in reference to political life. Explaining what it is
that we see, and what is the name of the things going on, thus imposing
one’s own definition of the situation on other participants of the pub-
lic life, is one of the key activities of politicians. When we think of the
term of situation definition and refer it to a concrete rhetorical situation
a number of necessary elements have to be considered. In rhetoric and
social sciences there are three concepts which seem to be mutually com-
plementing each other. These are: rhetorical situation, definition of situ-
ation and persuasive definition.
What shall we consider a rhetorical situation? In the most concise
approach we mean the context in which a given utterance is presented
and received. “Not the rhetor and not persuasive intent, but the situ-
ation is the source and ground of rhetorical activity” Lloyd Bitzer ex-
plains (1999: 220). It is the situation that defines the way of speaking.
Who the speaker is, what social role he/she plays, the nature of the audi-
ence and the time and place – those are the factors construing the rhe-
torical situation. Thus when we speak of rhetorical situation, we mean
specific historic circumstances. In the analyzed debates that context was
out of necessity created by the economic crisis, that hit the Euro zone,
decisions that the leaders of the EU states took, aiming at the reduction
