The piece “What is Rhetoric?” is a shorter version of Bolin Carroll’s “Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps Toward Rhetorical Analysis”. “What is Rhetoric?” summarizes the main points of the other pieces and reiterates Bolin Carroll’s point that when rhetoric is used purposefully, it can get something done in the world (1).

Nothing really surprises me in this piece. However, there is one item that was included in this piece that was not in Bolin Carroll’s piece: it’s the importance of the arrangement of the text. I have been exposed to the fact that order in a certain piece is necessary and can influence how the piece is absorbed by whoever the audience is. In here, it is given a more fancier term: “rhetorical appeals of style”.