To me, rhetoric is the strategic use of words and writing to persuade and extend a point of view from a fair, and credible standpoint. Thinking and acting rhetorically are a process that people use everyday that cannot work without the use of the other. For example, if somebody asks you to write an essay on if dangerous breeds of dogs should be outlawed or not, you’re going to start by thinking of the question, and how to apply your opinion to it in a respectable and professional way. You’ll gather all your thoughts, knowledge, facts, etc. and organize them in a neat, powerful form. Then you will act on it. Acting rhetorically should be a similar form to thinking rhetorically but the way in which you deliver your essay matters tremendously on word choice and the way you organize your claim. You wouldn’t want to begin all the opinions you have with hateful words and take on a hostile tone. You would start by addressing your claim, backing it up with facts and statistics, acknowledging a counter argument and proving it wrong, and ending with a summarization of your essay. Acting rhetorically is the actual delivery whereas thinking rhetorically is the process of how you are going to begin.
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