There are two different authors to analyze when examining
Pericles’ funeral oration at the end of the first year of the Peloponnesian
war. The obvious speaker is
Pericles. Primarily, he uses an
emotional appeal (pathos) in epideitic speech to strengthen the morale of his
fellow citizens. Naturally, the kairos
of this situation lends itself to an inspiring speech. If I were an Athenian in the beginning years
of a war, I imagine that I would ask myself, “Is it worth it to fight this war?” Not only did he have great timing, but Pericles
knew his audience well because he appealed to their sense of sophistication and
civility. For example, he said, “It is
more the case of our being a model to others than of our imitating anyone else”
(pg. 3, line 27-28). The Athenians loved
to think themselves a notch above the rest.
And there couldn’t have been a better circumstance, nor speaker. Pericles had a well established reputation as
a learned politician and a great military general (ethos). The Greeks admired the ability to speak well
and great physical prowess. Pericles had
both. 
In
addition to the setting of the speech, the form of the speech is
intriguing. As in many epideitic
speeches, Pericles calls his listeners to their Athenian ancestors and the
battles they fought. But he
interestingly dips into a more judicial, logos mode as he defends the
reputation of his fallen troops. “We
ought to remember first is their gallant conduct against the enemy in defense
of their native land. They blotted out
their evil with good…” (page 6, line 14-16).
Personally, I believe that most of his speech was deliberative. In praising the education, military planning,
and political system of Athens, Pericles seems, to me, to have been urging the legislators
to continue upholding the standards of life that Athens enjoyed.
These people have just experienced something traumatizing, and in order for Pericles to sooth their aches and pains of loosing loved ones in the war, he keeps his speech positive, giving praise, and also advice for coping with the loss. He indeed was well aware of his audience's standpoint, and wanted to be a helpful hand in lifting their spirits a little.
ReplyDeleteAs much as rhetoric is a great tool for relaying history to an audience that wasn't present at the time of an event, I agree with you that bias always tends to creep in. From events like this where rhetoric is so beautifully used, we can never fully know if an account is without bias and fully true... makes me wonder how biased a lot of accounts we read from history really are.
ReplyDeleteYour insight to Pericles' use of logos is one I hadn't seen myself, but what you say is absolutely true. He appeals to reason to support his argument.
ReplyDeleteYou used pathos pretty well yourself. Great use of putting yourself in their shoes to find out the kairos and how you'd react.
ReplyDelete