Have you ever been in the doctor’s office and noticed the way the doctor speaks to you versus they do to the nurses? They start to use a different rhetoric than what they usually would. More medical terms tossed around that we as patients may not understand. Rhetoric is a certain and specific language used to persuade someone into understanding what someone is trying to convey. So the doctor changing the way they speak to you so that you’ll understand what they are saying is part of changing the rhetoric. This ties into the digital world as well. Digital rhetoric is a certain language we use online. This can look like using shortened versions of phrases like, omg or lol. These are typical letter pairings more used online than in person.
Eyman does make it a point that rhetoric is the specific language, also used between colleagues especially in the digital world. As well as the persuasion aspect of it. “One of the most prevalent current practices for making connections between digital media/communications and rhetorical practices is a move to understand “persuasion” in broad terms”.(Eyman Pg 27). Digital rhetoric can be used to build communities.For example between colleagues or even just a group of people that share similar interests. To use an example, a good one is swifties. Only they all know all the lyrics and references/ lore behind the songs. Swifties each know the context of what they’re saying. They know the rhetoric being used to share their love for Taylor Swift. It’s a dedicated art.
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