C
- Canon. A term often used to discuss significant literary works in a specific field, used by Cicero to outline five significant parts of the rhetorical composition process.
- Captatio benevolentiae. Any literary or oral device which seeks to secure the goodwill of the recipient or hearer, as in a letter or in a discussion.
- Catachresis. The inexact use of a similar word in place of the proper one to create an unlikely metaphor. For example (from Rhetorica ad Herennium), "'The power of man is short'" or "'the long wisdom in the man.'"
- Charisma. An attribute that allows a speaker's words to become powerful.
- Chiasmus. From the name of the Greek letter "χ", a figure of speech consisting of the contrasting of two structurally parallel syntactic phrases arranged "cross-wise", i.e. in such a way that the second is in reverse order from the first.
- Circa rem. Latin: The circumstances surrounding the act in one Roman topical system.
- Claim 1. A primary point being made to support an argument. 2. Stephen Toulmin: the resulting conclusion to an argument.
- Classicism. A revival in the interest of classical antiquity languages and texts.
- Climax. Climax occurs when words or sentences are used to increase weight by mounting degrees in parallel construction.
- Colon. A colon (Greek κῶλον) is a rhetorical figure consisting of a clause which is grammatically, but not logically, complete.
- Colloquialism. A word or phrase that is not formal or literary, typically one used in ordinary or familiar conversation.
- Common Topics. Arguments and approaches useful in rhetorical settings; koinoi topoi.
- Consubstantiality. Substance commonality.
- Conclusio. Latin: A letter's conclusion.
- Confirmatio. Latin: The section of a judicial speech (in Roman rhetorical theory) that offers evidence supporting the claims given during the statement of facts.
- Confutatio. Latin: Counterargument in Roman rhetorical theory.
- Constraints. Referring to "persons, events, objects, and relations which are parts of the situation because they have the power to constrain decision and action needed to modify the exigence." Originally used by Lloyd Bitzer.
- Contingency. In rhetoric, it relates to the contextual circumstances that do not allow an issue to be settled with complete certainty.
- Context. The circumstances surrounding an issue that should be considered during its discussion.
- Conversio. Latin: Varrying sentence structure to discover its most agreeable form.
- Conversation model. The model, in critique of traditional rhetoric by Sally Gearhart, that maintains the goal of rhetoric is to persuade others to accept your own personal view as correct.
- Cookery. Plato believed rhetoric was to truth as cookery was to medicine. Cookery disguises itself as medicine and appears to be more pleasing, when in actuality it has no real benefit.
- Critical theory. Systematically analyzing any means of communication for hidden assumptions and connotations.
- Concession. Acknowledgment of objections to a proposal
Read more about this topic: Glossary Of Rhetoric Terms