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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Aristotle's opinion, what did simple words convey?

2. Why did Aristotle consider metaphors to be useful in Book III, Chapter 10?

3. According to Aristotle, what should vivid descriptions always depict?

4. In the example provided by Aristotle, what was used to object to a common saying?

5. As explained by Aristotle in Book III, Chapter 10, how should effective prose express its important points?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Aristotle define a maxim?

2. What were the four ways that Aristotle listed about how objections could be raised?

3. How did Aristotle compare a simile and a metaphor in Book III, Chapter 4?

4. In what way did Aristotle describe the differences between written prose and spoken prose in Book III, Chapter 12?

5. What was Aristotle's opinion of the paean rhythm in prose?

6. What clarification did Aristotle make about amplification, enthymemes, and the soundness of enthymemes at the end of the section?

7. What would the a fortiori argument refer to in rhetoric?

8. How did Aristotle explain the different kinds of arguments used by the three types of rhetoric in Book II, Chapter 18?

9. As explained by Aristotle, what four common mistakes were made while writing prose?

10. As the second type of example, what were the two forms of the invented facts?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Legal rhetoric was a main form of speech for courts and trials in Aristotle's time.

1) Describe the similarities and differences between the two types of law: the special and the general.

2) Explain Aristotle's definition of wrongdoing.

3) Analyze how both laws applied to wrongdoing and legal rhetoric.

Essay Topic 2

Explain the many aspects and traits of virtue and justice, their value in epideictic rhetoric, and the techniques that Aristotle described for applying them to epideictic speaking.

Essay Topic 3

Explain the three stages of a lifetime that Aristotle outlined, the connection between a person's age and circumstances, the examples that Aristotle gave to support his views, and the reasons why he might have had those views about age and life. Provide your own examples in your analysis of which points you agree and/or disagree with Aristotle about his opinions on the stages in a person's life.

(see the answer keys)

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