The good old days

I firmly believe that American society is improving in almost every area, and indeed, that we're better off in more areas than any other society in history. Still, there are areas in which we used to do better, and our view of rhetoric is one of them.

This blog entry--my first on here in entirely too long--was inspired by Richard Weaver's "Language is Sermonic." A quick Google search reveals that I'm not the first student of rhetoric to be inspired by the lines I wanted to quote. Take a look at what Becky posted almost exactly two years ago:

A great shift of valuation has taken place. In those days, in the not-so-distant Nineteenth Century, to be a professor of rhetoric, one had to be somebody. This was a teaching task that was thought to call for ample and varied resources, and it was recognized as addressing itself to the most important of all ends, the persuading of human beings to adopt right attitudes and act in response to them.

And while you're at it, you might look over the rest of her blog. It's quite worthwhile.

On another note, I ordered a new computer about ten days ago, and it should be arriving soon. I'm hoping it will make blogging easier, so you'll be hearing more from me on here.