Lectures on Rhetoric and Oratory: Delivered to the Classes of Senior and Junior Sophisters in Harvard University, Volume 1Before becoming President of the United States, John Quincy Adams was a Harvard professor of language, rhetoric and oratory, with this book comprising his lectures. Published in 1810 when Quincy Adams was in his forties, this work is a collection which demonstrates the breadth of knowledge which he passed to students eager to learn about the arts of speaking. The early lectures cover the basic principles of oratory and eloquence in the context of public speaking, and the origins of rhetoric as a celebrated art form in ancient Greece and Rome. It is clear that the author possesses an intense knowledge of the subject and its professional application. Later on in the text are more specific lectures, such as the importance of perfecting oratory for the courtroom, and the personal qualities a good speaker should cultivate. Keeping tight control of one's emotions when speaking or debating with others, and delivering compelling lectures from the church pulpit, are also discussed at length. Although this material is well over 200 years old with much of the language archaic by modern standards, the ideas and principles espoused by Quincy Adams remain both relevant and important to students and those working in fields where speech is vital. |
From inside the book
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... common understanding , no longer con- vertible , when modified to designate the persons , professing them ; and the difference between the rhetorician and the orator , is instantly perceived and distinctly conveyed , by the mere use of ...
... common talk , TAM . SHR . says one of the characters in Shakspeare to his collegiate friend ; and the advice is good . But it is not for this , that an artificial system of eloquence was ever constructed , or ought ever to be taught . A ...
... common sense . On this review we shall find the poet's position not exactly conformable to truth ; and even so far as true , by no means decisive against the study of the science . For what can be more necessary to the artist , than to ...
... common- wealths . The most strenuous energies of the human mind , would he say , are always employ- ed , where they are instigated by the stimulus of the highest rewards . The art of speaking must be most eagerly sought , where it is ...
... common interests , occasional as well as permanent , there above all others will be the spot , where eloquence will spring to light ; will flourish ; will rise to the high- est perfection , of which human art or science is susceptible ...