Glossary of Rhetoric Terms - M

M

• Major premise. Statement in a syllogism. Generalization.

• Magnanimity. Doing good to others, "its opposite is meanness of spirit" (from Aristotle's Rhetoric).

• Material fallacy. False notion concerning the subject matter of an argument.

• Maxim. "A saying drawn from life, which shows concisely either what happens or ought to happen in life, for example: 'Every beginning is difficult.'" (from Rhetorica ad Herennium)

• Memory. Described by Cicero as the "firm mental grasp of matter and words;" the fourth of his five rhetorical canons.

• Metanarrative. Universal theories positing to know all aspects of humanity.

• Metaphor. A figure of speech where a word that normally applies to one thing is used to designate another for the sake of creating a mental picture. For example (from Rhetorica ad Herennium), "'...he lightly breathed a favoring breath'".

• Metonymy. A figure of speech which substitutes one word or phrase for another with which it is closely associated. For example (from Rhetorica ad Herennium), "one should say 'wine' for 'Liber', 'wheat' for 'Ceres'." In UK, people speak of "Crown property" meaning property belonging to the Sovereign. Similarly: "The White House had no comment to make." (= the President's representatives)

• Metron. Greek, measure.

• Minor premise. Statement in an argument.

• Modus inveniendi. Latin, in St Augustine, material used to understand the scriptures.

• Modus proferendi. Latin, in St. Augustine, expressing ideas found within the scriptures.

• Moral reasoning. Reasoning employed in rhetoric that determines a conclusion based on evidence. Used in issues of ethics, religion, economics, and politics.

• Motive. Something that plays a role in one's decision to act.

• Movere. To persuade; viewed by Cicero as one of the three goals of rhetoric.