retoriksi

Retoriksi is the study and practice of rhetoric, the art of effective communication and persuasion. It analyzes how language, imagery, and the organization of content influence audiences across spoken, written, and visual media, including digital formats.

The term retoriksi is used in some languages as a cognate of rhetoric. Its closest equivalents include retorika in Indonesian and Malay, and rhetoric in English; the root lies in Greek rhētorikē, the art of eloquence and persuasive speaking.

Core concepts include ethos (the speaker’s credibility and character), logos (appeal to reason), and pathos (appeal to emotion), as well as the arrangement, style, and delivery of a message. Retoriksi also studies audience analysis, adaptation, and the use of rhetorical devices such as metaphor, parallelism, repetition, and rhetorical questions.

Historically, retoriksi traces to ancient Greece and Rome, with figures such as Aristotle, Cicero, and Quintilian shaping its principles. It evolved through medieval and modern periods, influencing education, law, politics, and media. Contemporary theories connect rhetoric with discourse analysis, argumentation theory, and media studies.

Forms of rhetoric include classical categories such as deliberative, judicial (forensic), and ceremonial (epideictic) practices; in modern contexts, political rhetoric, advertising, public relations, and digital communication are major domains. Techniques commonly examined are metaphor, analogy, anaphora, repetition, antithesis, and rhetorical questions.

Ethical considerations are central to retoriksi. Critics warn that rhetoric can manipulate or mislead; supporters emphasize critical literacy, transparency, and responsible persuasion. The study aims to understand influence, clarify arguments, and promote informed public discourse.