Today in class we talked about how Odysseus' skill as as a storyteller allowed the Phaiakians to believe his story, however unbelievable it seemed. Alkinoos said of Odysseus "You have a grace upon your words, and there is sound sense in them." What Schuler said in class with our group was basically about how this was a testament of how powerful ethos can be as a form of rhetoric. Odysseus, won over the entire crowd at the feast by essentially convincing them of the legitimacy of his story by the way he told it. He shed real tears at the loss of his men and the trials they have been through. Because of the fact that he established with them that he truly cared for his men and truly desired to reach home, no one in that palace doubted any part of his story.To me this is just impressive. Odysseus's story is far fetched to say the least, but purely through textbook ethos, he wins over the crowd.
P.S. I commented on Becca's
No comments:
Post a Comment