Non-argumentative rhetoric: aspects of Zen rhetoric [articol]

Abstract

This work aims to investigate on a meta-theoretical level the conceptual framework of rhetoric. Two spheres can be distinguished: the argumentative or persuasive rhetoric and the non-argumentative or non-persuasive rhetoric. Tracing the contemporary theoretical trends in the rhetoric field, we propose an alternative version of conceptualization. Using both the feminist invitational rhetoric and the comparative rhetoric, we propose an integrative synthesis. The alternative is found in the Buddhists texts and practices. Among the non-argumentative aspects of language we mention: negation, contradiction, silence, the story or the paradox. We believe that these elements of our daily life are worth emphasized and encompassed in an integrative perspective. It is possible not to evaluate.