My rhetoric and civilization students have looked at rhetoric in Homer. The Iliad (and Odyssey) have provided ample examples both of actions intended to coerce, and speeches intended to persuade.
I would like my students now to consider the power of persuasion/coercion in their own lives. What is a memorable experience in which you were subject to powerful persuasion - - either through someone's verbal arguments or else by other means? either positively or negatively?
Words are not the only influence on behavior, of course, so be sure that you also consider how you have personally witnessed or experienced persuasive influence that was not primarily verbal or based on reason. What are the irrational persuasive influences you've experienced or witnessed?
Give a short personal account of powerful persuasion in 300 words. Look at other students' accounts and try to represent a range of different types of persuasion and persuasive settings.
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