As rhetorical approaches to studying public relations have gained stature, two incomplete visions of rhetoric affect their progress. The first is the notion that rhetoric, particularly classical rhetoric, was essentially asymmetrical, thus offering little to the greater understanding and furtherance of two-way symmetry. The second misconception adopts virtually the opposite point of view, maintaining that rhetoric traditionally has been a comprehensive dialectical process—a civic-minded dialogue—that nobly seeks the best for society. Such an approach overlooks important early struggles between asymmetrical and symmetrical rhetorics. In the Athens of fourth century B.C., the asymmetrical rhetorics of Plato and Aristotle competed with the symmetrical rhetoric of Isocrates. Isocratean rhetoric is characterized by a quest for symmetry and the common good; incorporation of boundary spanning; a moral foundation; and ties to a comprehensive system of education. The triumph of Isocratean rhetoric over competing asymmetrical models in Athens of the fourth century B.C. supports modern studies that indicate the comparative effectiveness of the two-way symmetrical model of public relations.