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6 Minute English from BBCLearningEnglish.com

Hello, this is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.

And I'm Sam.

Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears.

Do you know where these famous words are from, Sam?

I think that's a speech by Mark Antony

in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar.

Wow, I'm impressed. Caesar has been assassinated

and Mark Antony tries to persuade the crowd to find his killers.

Using words to persuade people, giving them a good reason to do what you say

or to accept your argument is known as rhetoric.

In this programme, we'll be hearing all about rhetoric

and, of course, learning some related vocabulary as well.

The art of rhetoric started with the ancient Greek philosophers.

Later, during the Roman Republic, politicians and statesmen used rhetoric

in speeches given to crowds in the public square.

Although technology has transformed the way we communicate since then,

the art of rhetoric is still alive today.

Modern politicians may prefer Twitter to the public square,

but they still use persuasive language, including soundbites,

...