This text is part of:
Search the Perseus Catalog for:
View text chunked by:
[9]
If we have no enthymemes, we must employ
examples as demonstrative proofs, for conviction is produced by these; but if we
have them, examples must be used as evidence and as a kind of epilogue to the
enthymemes.1 For if they stand first, they resemble induction, and
induction is not suitable to rhetorical speeches except in very few cases; if
they stand last they resemble evidence, and a witness is in every case likely to
induce belief. Wherefore also it is necessary to quote a number of examples if
they are put first, but one alone is sufficient if they are put last; for even a
single trustworthy witness is of use. We have thus stated how many kinds of
examples there are, and how and when they should be made use of.
1 If we have no enthymemes, we must use examples instead of them; for they are useful for persuasion, although they do not really demonstrate anything. If we have enthymemes, we must use examples in corroboration of them （see 21.3 note）.
Aristotle in 23 Volumes, Vol. 22, translated by J. H. Freese. Aristotle. Cambridge and London. Harvard University Press; William Heinemann Ltd. 1926.
The Annenberg CPB/Project provided support for entering this text.
Purchase a copy of this text (not necessarily the same edition) from Amazon.com
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.
An XML version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer Perseus any modifications you make. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system.