§3.1.1ἐπειδὴ τρία ἐστὶν ἃ δεῖ πραγματευθῆναι περὶ τὸν λόγον, ἓν μὲν ἐκ τίνων αἱ πίστεις ἔσονται, δεύτερον δὲ περὶ τὴν λέξιν, τρίτον δὲ πῶς χρὴ τάξαι τὰ μέρη τοῦ λόγου, περὶ μὲν τῶν πίστεων εἴρηται, καὶ ἐκ πόσων, ὅτι ἐκ τριῶν εἰσί, καὶ ταῦτα ποῖα, καὶ διὰ τί τοσαῦτα μόνα (ἢ γὰρ τῷ αὐτοί τι πεπονθέναι οἱ κρίνοντες, ἢ τῷ ποιούς τινας ὑπολαμβάνειν τοὺς λέγοντας, ἢ τῷ ἀποδεδεῖχθαι, πείθονται πάντες), εἴρηται δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐνθυμήματα, πόθεν δεῖ πορίζεσθαι (ἔστι γὰρ τὰ μὲν εἴδη τῶν ἐνθυμημάτων, τὰ δὲ τόποι)·
Since there are three things that must be treated concerning speech—first, from what sources the modes of persuasion will come; second, concerning style; third, how one should arrange the parts of the speech—the modes of persuasion have been discussed, and from how many sources they are, namely that they are from three sources, and what these are, and why there are only so many (for everyone is persuaded either by the judges themselves being affected in some way, or by supposing the speakers to be of a certain character, or by the matter being demonstrated); and the enthymemes have also been discussed, from what sources they should be provided (for some of these are specific kinds of enthymemes, while others are topics).
§3.1.2περὶ δὲ τῆς λέξεως ἐχόμενόν ἐστιν εἰπεῖν· οὐ γὰρ ἀπόχρη τὸ ἔχειν ἃ δεῖ λέγειν, ἀλλʼ ἀνάγκη καὶ ταῦτα ὡς δεῖ εἰπεῖν, καὶ συμβάλλεται πολλὰ πρὸς τὸ φανῆναι ποιόν τινα τὸν λόγον.
And next in order is to speak concerning style; for it is not enough to possess what one ought to say, but it is also necessary to say these things in the way one ought, and this contributes greatly to making the speech appear to be of a certain character.
§3.1.3τὸ μὲν οὖν πρῶτον ἐζητήθη κατὰ φύσιν ὅπερ πέφυκε πρῶτον, αὐτὰ τὰ πράγματα ἐκ τίνων ἔχει τὸ πιθανόν, δεύτερον δὲ τὸ ταῦτα τῇ λέξει διαθέσθαι, τρίτον δὲ τούτων ὃ δύναμιν μὲν ἔχει μεγίστην, οὔπω δʼ ἐπικεχείρηται, τὰ περὶ τὴν ὑπόκρισιν.
Thus, first of all, that was investigated which is naturally first—namely, from what sources the facts themselves possess persuasive power; second, the arrangement of these facts by means of style; and third, that which has the greatest power among these but has not yet been attempted, namely what concerns delivery.
καὶ γὰρ εἰς τὴν τραγικὴν καὶ ῥαψῳδίαν ὀψὲ παρῆλθεν· ὑπεκρίνοντο γὰρ αὐτοὶ τὰς τραγῳδίας οἱ ποιηταὶ τὸ πρῶτον.
For indeed, it entered late into tragic drama and rhapsody; for at first the poets themselves acted their own tragedies.
δῆλον οὖν ὅτι καὶ περὶ τὴν ῥητορικήν ἐστι τὸ τοιοῦτον ὥσπερ καὶ περὶ τὴν ποιητικήν, ὅπερ ἕτεροί τέ τινες ἐπραγματεύθησαν καὶ Γλαύκων ὁ Τήιος.
It is clear, then, that also concerning rhetoric there is such a thing, just as concerning poetics, which indeed certain others have treated, including Glaucon of Teos.
§3.1.4ἔστιν δὲ αὕτη μὲν ἐν τῇ φωνῇ, πῶς αὐτῇ δεῖ χρῆσθαι πρὸς ἕκαστον πάθος, οἷον πότε μεγάλῃ καὶ πότε μικρᾷ καὶ μέσῃ, καὶ πῶς τοῖς τόνοις, οἷον ὀξείᾳ καὶ βαρείᾳ καὶ μέσῃ, καὶ ῥυθμοῖς τίσι πρὸς ἕκαστα.
And this delivery lies in the voice: how one should use it for each emotion—for example, when loudly, when softly, and when moderately—and how to use the tones, such as high, low, and intermediate, and what rhythms to use for each case.
τρία γάρ ἐστιν περὶ ἃ σκοποῦσιν· ταῦτα δʼ ἐστὶ μέγεθος ἁρμονία ῥυθμός.
For there are three things which they look into, and these are volume, harmony, and rhythm.
τὰ μὲν οὖν ἆθλα σχεδὸν ἐκ τῶν ἀγώνων οὗτοι λαμβάνουσιν, καὶ καθάπερ ἐκεῖ μεῖζον δύνανται νῦν τῶν ποιητῶν οἱ ὑποκριταί, καὶ κατὰ τοὺς πολιτικοὺς ἀγῶνας, διὰ τὴν μοχθηρίαν τῶν πολιτῶν.
Now, it is these actors who generally carry off the prizes from the contests, and just as there the actors now have greater power than the poets, so it is also in political contests, owing to the corruption of the citizens.
§3.1.5οὔπω δὲ σύγκειται τέχνη περὶ αὐτῶν, ἐπεὶ καὶ τὸ περὶ τὴν λέξιν ὀψὲ προῆλθεν· καὶ δοκεῖ φορτικὸν εἶναι, καλῶς ὑπολαμβανόμενον.
But an art concerning these things has not yet been composed, since even the study of style advanced late; and delivery is thought to be a vulgar thing, when rightly understood.
ἀλλʼ ὅλης οὔσης πρὸς δόξαν τῆς πραγματείας τῆς περὶ τὴν ῥητορικήν, οὐχ ὡς ὀρθῶς ἔχοντος ἀλλʼ ὡς ἀναγκαίου τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν ποιητέον, ἐπεὶ τό γε δίκαιόν ἐστι μηδὲν πλέον ζητεῖν περὶ τὸν λόγον ἢ ὥστε μήτε λυπεῖν μήτʼ εὐφραίνειν·
But since the whole business of rhetoric is directed toward opinion, we must pay attention to it, not as being right, but as being necessary; since justice, at least, demands that we seek nothing more in speech than that we should neither offend nor please.
δίκαιον γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἀγωνίζεσθαι τοῖς πράγμασιν, ὥστε τἆλλα ἔξω τοῦ ἀποδεῖξαι περίεργα ἐστίν· ἀλλʼ ὅμως μέγα δύναται, καθάπερ εἴρηται, διὰ τὴν τοῦ ἀκροατοῦ μοχθηρίαν.
For it is just to fight with the facts themselves, so that everything outside of demonstration is superfluous; and yet delivery has great power, as has been said, because of the corruption of the hearer.
§3.1.6τὸ μὲν οὖν τῆς λέξεως ὅμως ἔχει τι μικρὸν ἀναγκαῖον ἐν πάσῃ διδασκαλίᾳ· διαφέρει γάρ τι πρὸς τὸ δηλῶσαι ὡδὶ ἢ ὡδὶ εἰπεῖν, οὐ μέντοι τοσοῦτον, ἀλλʼ ἅπαντα φαντασία ταῦτʼ ἐστί, καὶ πρὸς τὸν ἀκροατήν· διὸ οὐδεὶς οὕτω γεωμετρεῖν διδάσκει.
EXcept for that, the matter of style has some small necessity in every kind of instruction; for it makes some difference for making things clear whether one speaks in this way or that, yet not so very much, but all these things are mere appearance and aimed at the hearer; wherefore no one teaches geometry in this way.
§3.1.7ἐκείνη μὲν οὖν ὅταν ἔλθῃ ταὐτὸ ποιήσει τῇ ὑποκριτικῇ, ἐγκεχειρήκασιν δὲ ἐπʼ ὀλίγον περὶ αὐτῆς εἰπεῖν τινές, οἷον Θρασύμαχος ἐν τοῖς Ἐλέοις·
Now, that study, when it is fully developed, will produce the same effect as delivery. And some have indeed attempted to discuss it to a small extent, as Thrasymachus did in his *Appeals*.
καὶ ἔστιν φύσεως τὸ ὑποκριτικὸν εἶναι, καὶ ἀτεχνότερον, περὶ δὲ τὴν λέξιν ἔντεχνον.
And to be capable of delivery is a matter of natural gift and rather non-technical, whereas concerning style it is a matter of art.
διὸ καὶ τοῖς τοῦτο δυναμένοις γίνεται πάλιν ἆθλα, καθάπερ καὶ τοῖς κατὰ τὴν ὑπόκρισιν ῥήτορσιν· οἱ γὰρ γραφόμενοι λόγοι μεῖζον ἰσχύουσι διὰ τὴν λέξιν ἢ διὰ τὴν διάνοιαν.
Wherefore, for those who are capable of this, prizes are in turn awarded, just as for those rhetoricians who excel in delivery; for written speeches owe their force more to their style than to their thought.
§3.1.8ἤρξαντο μὲν οὖν κινῆσαι τὸ πρῶτον, ὥσπερ πέφυκεν, οἱ ποιηταί· τὰ γὰρ ὀνόματα μιμήματα ἐστίν, ὑπῆρξεν δὲ καὶ ἡ φωνὴ πάντων μιμητικώτατον τῶν μορίων ἡμῖν·
It was the poets, then, who naturally first set this in motion; for words are imitations, and the voice was also of all our organs the most imitative.
διὸ καὶ αἱ τέχναι συνέστησαν ἥ τε ῥαψῳδία καὶ ἡ ὑποκριτικὴ καὶ ἄλλαι γε.
Wherefore also the arts arose—rhapsody, acting, and others besides.
§3.1.9ἐπεὶ δʼ οἱ ποιηταί, λέγοντες εὐήθη, διὰ τὴν λέξιν ἐδόκουν πορίσασθαι τὴν δόξαν, διὰ τοῦτο ποιητικὴ πρώτη ἐγένετο λέξις, οἷον ἡ Γοργίου, καὶ νῦν ἔτι οἱ πολλοὶ τῶν ἀπαιδεύτων τοὺς τοιούτους οἴονται διαλέγεσθαι κάλλιστα.
But since the poets, though saying silly things, seemed to have acquired their reputation because of their style, for this reason a poetic style arose first, such as that of Gorgias, and even now most uneducated people think that such speakers discourse most beautifully.
τοῦτο δʼ οὐκ ἔστιν, ἀλλʼ ἑτέρα λόγου καὶ ποιήσεως λέξις ἐστίν. δηλοῖ δὲ τὸ συμβαῖνον·
But this is not so, but the style of prose and that of poetry are different.
οὐδὲ γὰρ οἱ τὰς τραγῳδίας ποιοῦντες ἔτι χρῶνται τὸν αὐτὸν πρόπον, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ καὶ ἐκ τῶν τετραμέτρων εἰς τὸ ἰαμβεῖον μετέβησαν διὰ τὸ τῷ λόγῳ τοῦτο τῶν μέτρων ὁμοιότατον εἶναι τῶν ἄλλων, οὕτω καὶ τῶν ὀνομάτων ἀφείκασιν ὅσα παρὰ τὴν διάλεκτόν ἐστιν, οἷς οἱ πρῶτοι ἐκόσμουν, καὶ ἔτι νῦν οἱ τὰ ἑξάμετρα ποιοῦντες.
What has actually happened shows this; for not even those who write tragedies still use the same manner, but just as they changed from tetrameters to iambic verse because this of all meters is most like spoken prose, so also they have discarded all those words which are foreign to conversation, with which the early poets used to adorn their works, and which are still used by those who write hexameters.
διὸ γελοῖον μιμεῖσθαι τούτους οἳ αὐτοὶ οὐκέτι χρῶνται ἐκείνῳ τῷ τρόπῳ,
Wherefore it is ridiculous to imitate those who themselves no longer use that manner.
§3.1.10ὥστε φανερὸν ὅτι οὐχ ἅπαντα ὅσα περὶ λέξεως ἔστιν εἰπεῖν ἀκριβολογητέον ἡμῖν, ἀλλʼ ὅσα περὶ τοιαύτης οἵας λέγομεν.
So it is clear that we need not discuss in detail everything that can be said about style, but only what concerns such a style as we are speaking of.
περὶ δʼ ἐκείνης εἴρηται ἐν τοῖς περὶ ποιητικῆς.
Concerning the other, it has been discussed in the *Poetics*.