Reflection #16

Rhetoric was created by Aristotle. It is a form of persuasion through talking. This Rhetoric lead to the creation of declamation classes for students. These speech classes assigned students topics in which they had to discuss and give a speech for in front of their class. There were three types of teachers in the school system. They had the litterator which taught reading writing and arithmetic. There was also the grammaticus which taught secondary level students to memorize and recite words aloud. Teachers made sure that the students pronounced every word correctly. Then there was the rhetor whom taught students to make speeches on a specific subject. They also made students participate in debates, this was called declamatio. These speeches and debates were split amongst two types. There was the quaestiones theme, which was basically just general themes and the causae themes that had to do with specific people or situation. Teachers made students place themselves in different situations as if looking through someone else's perspective and they were to give a speech or debate arguing their side. Rhetoric began to grow, but however it with growing in it’s style and form not the content of how important the matter being recited was. Declamatio became very popular in rome. It began to influence schools greatly and even adults. Everyone fell in love with the art of debate. It influenced literature in schools and oratory. Controversia was also sparked by declamatio. Controversia was the arguing of a topic in front of an imaginary jury. This also was divided in three sections; the sententiae, the divisio, and colores. The sententia was the argument that was being fought. The divisio was the legal statements of what is being fought. The colores are motives or explanations about what is being fought. Students performed debates in front of teachers and parents. Rhetoric became a big part of the education system. It became it’s own individual subject. Controversia exhibitions were given as shows for parents in which the students argued amongst each other an imaginary case.