Aristotle’s enthymeme: syllogisms or creative processes?

Authors

  • Maria Wolrath Söderberg Södertörn University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.52610/rhs.v14i53.169

Keywords:

enthymeme, Aristotle, discursive process, coherence, topos

Abstract

The Enthymeme, which is a central concept in Aristotle’s rhetoric, is also one of his most debated notions. A majority of the interpretations proceed from Aristotle’s own words “the enthymeme is a kind of syllogism” and most of them understand the enthymeme as a reduced syllogism or a syllogism based on the plausible. In this article different views of the Aristotelian enthymeme are examined, and an alternative outlook inspired by Aristotle’s own examples, is put forward. This is a suggestion that takes into consideration the context dependence, the dialogical nature and the need for presence (in a Perelmanian sense), in human communication and construction of meaning. The enthymeme is here viewed as a discursive process in which the reasoning of the speaker connects with the listener’s structures of meaning. An important phenomenon in this process is the establishment of coherence.

Author Biography

Maria Wolrath Söderberg, Södertörn University

Maria Wolrath Söderberg är adjunkt vid Institutionen för kommunikation medier och it, Södertörns Högskola

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Published

2025-12-16

How to Cite

Wolrath Söderberg, M. (2025). Aristotle’s enthymeme: syllogisms or creative processes?. Rhetorica Scandinavica, 14(53), 36–66. https://doi.org/10.52610/rhs.v14i53.169