Rhetoric

From ancient times to the 19th century, Rhetoric was a requirement at all institutions of higher education in the western hemisphere. Today, studies in rhetoric maintain this training in oral and written communication. However, rhetoric is not only practice, but also comprises a theory about humanity, society and language. Rhetorical theory includes how to build an argumentation, how to compose a speech or a text, and how to model linguistic style in accordance with subject, audience, and situation.

Rhetoric is about communication through language, images and performance, and patterns of rhetorical communication can be studied in politics, law, as well as in homiletics. Democratic societies require citizens with the right and ability to express themselves in adequate ways. Rhetoric therefore also includes the analysis of language as power. Uppsala University provides both undergraduate and graduate studies in rhetoric.