| The ancient Sophists were known for flowery, poetic, aesthetically pleasing appeals in their oratory. Although American culture is different from that in which the Sophists practiced, the human characteristics to which the sophists made their aesthetic appeals remain essentially the same. This study examines the presence and function of sophistic rhetoric within contemporary presidential speech by conducting a rhetorical critique through the textual analysis of three presidential speeches: L. B. Johnson's "Let Us Continue," G. W. Bush's 2002 State of the Union Address, and R. Reagan's "Evil Empire." Implications are discussed for sophistic rhetoric in contemporary presidential speech and for future studies. |
