Rhetoric as a Kind of Philosophy
Abstract
To ontological philosophies, language is merely a means of discovering the truth, which lies in the objects (ontos) that exist in the world. Their conviction is that it is possible for humans, based on method, logic, intuition, emotion, in short, on the competent application of their entire cognitive apparatus, to arrive at truth, that is, an absolute conclusion that must be accepted by everyone. In the field of ethics in general, truth corresponds to the good. Specifically in the field of law, truth corresponds to justice. A rhetorical philosophy defends that language constitutes the environment and that language is not just that highest possible level of agreement, but also the only one. This agreement is temporary, circumstantial and very frequently ignored, but it is just about the only feature that may be called “rationality”, in the sense of a specifically human quality.
Keywords
rhetoric and philosophy | rhetoric and ontology | the problem of trut | the problem of justice | eristics in law | intersubjectivity | legal facts | Rhetorik und Philosophie | Rhetorik und Ontologie | das Wahrheitsproblem | das Gerechtigkeitsproblem | Eristik im Recht | Intersubjektivität | rechtliche Fakten