RHETORIC AND MANIPULATIONS

Abstract

Manipulation as a means of planed and systematic control of human thought and understanding dates all the way back to earliest human history. It strongest weapon is the spoken word. It acts as a pressure upon the understanding of whole groups. And messages that are sent with such purpose undoubtedly illustrate the power of manipulation in everyday life. Electronic media, however, has further empowered this phenomenon. An individual perception has been replaced by a mass auditory and reception. As a result of political totalitarism, manipulation has resulted in a phenomenon of ‘new speech’: words are beginning to lose their basic sense and meaning. However, despite its far reaching influence, power of manipulation through a spoken word is weakening with the development of new theories in interpersonal communication. According to these theories, communication does no longer represent a one-way, but rather an interactive, two-sided process.