Logos and Rhetoric

Abstract

Logos(plurallogoi) is a polysemous Greek term, which generally has been used in rhetoric to refer to the component of persuasion grounded in logic or reason as opposed to that based on emotion or character, although these distinctions are not entirely unproblematic. The Greek nounlogosderives from the verblegô(to speak), and has many derivatives and cognates in several Indo‐European languages.Logosis found infrequently in Homer (eighth centurybce), coming into wide usage only in the prose writers of the sixth century, with the primary meaning of a “speech” or “tale.” It quickly became a common Greek term, with many meanings, including “word,” “story,” “speech,” “reputation,” “ratio,” “book‐keeping tally,” “rumor,” “rule,” “explanation,” “argument,” and “reason.”Logostends to signify uttered thought, rather than specific words; barbarians and Greeks are described as using different types of sound (phônê) or word (rhêma) to express the samelogos. In its senses as both reason and speech,logoswas used in ancient Greek to refer to that which distinguished humans from beasts. In much of Greek thought, rationality and speech were considered interdependent.