recover the lost ground; while an ill-chosen Title may prevent a Book from being read at all.

The fault committed in respect of the Title of the present Work is alluded to in the beginning of the Preface.

Conclusions.

$3.

Concerning the "Conclusion" [Peroration of the Latins, and Epilogus of the Greeks] it is not necessary to say much; since the general rules, that it should be neither so sudden and abrupt as to induce the hearer to say, "I did not know he was going to leave off," nor again so long as to excite impatience, are so obvious as not to need being dwelt on at large.

Both faults however. are common; and the latter, both the more common, and the worse. It is rather more common, because the writer or speaker is liable to find fresh and fresh thoughts occur to him as he proceeds, which he is loath to omit; especially if he have not, in the outset, drawn out, on paper, or mentally, (according to the recommendation formerly given,) a skeleton outline of his discourse. And it is also a worse fault than the other— the abrupt Conclusion, — because the disappointment caused is not as in that case single, but repeated and prolonged. And moreover, it not only excites immediate disapprobation, but weakens in the hearers' minds the force of all that had gone before.

The caution against these faults is evidently far the more important in reference to a discourse orally delivered, because, to a reader, the eye sufficiently shows the approach to the end. It should therefore be carefully recollected by one who is delivering orally a written discourse, that though to him it is written, it is not so to his hearers; and he is consequently

in danger of overlooking a fault in the Conclusion, such as I have been speaking of, while they will be struck by it.

In all Compositions however it is an advantage-though far the more important in those addressed to the ear- that notice should be given, a little, and but a little, beforehand, of the approach to a close; by saying "I will conclude by remarking," &c. or the like; and the closing remark should be not a long one, and should be not the least important and striking of the whole discourse: and if it contain a compressed repetition of something that had been before dwelt on, this is all the better.

Indeed, in any Composition that is not very short, the most frequent, and the most appropriate kind of Conclusion is a Recapitulation, either of the whole, or of part of the arguments that have been adduced: respecting which a remark has been made at the end of Ch. III. § 7.

It may be worth while here to remark that it is a common fault of an extemporary speaker, to be tempted, by finding himself listened to with attention and approbation, to go on adding another and another sentence (what is called, in the homely language of the jest, "more last words ") after he had intended, and announced his intention, to bring his discourse to a close; till at length the audience becoming manifestly weary and impatient, he is forced to conclude in a feeble and spiritless manner, like a half-extinguished candle going out in smoke. Let the Speaker decide beforehand what shall be his concluding topic; and let him premeditate thoroughly, not only the substance of it, but the mode of treating it, and all but the very words: and let him resolve that whatever liberty he may reserve to himself of expanding or contracting other parts of his speech, according as he finds the hearers more or less interested, (which is, for an extem

porary speaker, natural and proper,) he will strictly adhere to his original design in respect of what he has fixed on for his Conclusion; and that whenever he shall see fit to arrive at that, nothing shall tempt him either to expand it beyond what he had determined on, or to add any thing else beyond it.

Any thing relative to the Feelings and the Will, that may be especially appropriate to the Conclusion, will be mentioned in its proper place in the ensuing Part.

PART II.

OF PERSUASION.

CHAP. I. Introductory.

§ 1.

PERSUASION, properly so called, i. e. the art

Analysis of
Persuasion.

of influencing the Will, is the next point to be considered. And Rhetoric is often regarded (as was formerly remarked) in a more limited sense, as conversant about this head alone. But even, according to that view, the rules above laid down will be found not the less relevant; since the Conviction of the understanding (of which I have hitherto been treating) is an essential part of Persua sion; and will generally need to be effected by the Arguments of the Writer or Speaker. For in order that the Will may be influenced, two things are requisite; viz. 1. that the proposed Object should appear desirable; and 2. that the Means suggested should be proved to be conducive to the attainment of that object; and this last, evidently must depend on a process of Reasoning. In order, e. g. to induce the Greeks to unite their efforts against the Persian invader, it was necessary both to prove that coöperation could alone render their resistance effectual, and also to awaken such feelings of patriotism and abhorrence of a foreign yoke, as might prompt them 18* 209

to make these combined efforts. For it is evident, that however ardent their love of liberty, they would make no exertions if they apprehended no danger; or if they thought themselves able, separately, to defend themselves, they would be backward to join the confederacy: and on the other hand, that if they were willing to submit to the Persian yoke, or valued their independence less than their present ease, the fullest conviction that the Means recommended would secure their independence, would have had no practical effect.

Exhortation.

Persuasion, therefore, depends on, first, Argument, (to prove the expediency of the Means proposed,) and secondly, what is usually called Exhortation, i. e. the excitement of men to adopt those Means, by representing the end as sufficiently desirable. It will happen, indeed, not unfrequently, that the one or the other of these objects will have been already, either wholly or in part, accomplished; so that the other shall be the only one that it is requisite to insist on; viz. sometimes the hearers will be suf ficiently intent on the pursuit of the End, and will be in doubt only as to the means of attaining it; and sometimes, again, they will have no doubt on that point, but will be indifferent, or not sufficiently ardent, with respect to the proposed End, and will need to be stimulated by Exhortations. Not suf ficiently ardent, I have said, because it will not so often happen that the object in question will be one to which they are totally indifferent, as that they will, practically at least, not reckon it, or not feel it, to be worth the requisite pains. No one is absolutely indifferent about the attainment of a happy immortality; and yet a great part of the Preacher's business consists in Exhortation, i. e. endeavoring to induce men to use those exertions which they themselves believe to be necessary for the attainment of it.