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Andrea M. Edwards

Edlund, Dr. John

English 581-History of Rhetoric

20 March 2014

Revised: Fall 2015

Memory and Oral Tradition in Rhetoric

Oral tradition has been a large part of ancient societies for thousands of years, and these

societies have used oral tradition for stories, records, trade, and to simply keep their own cultures

alive (Kubota and Lehner 13). Memory and mnemonic devices in ancient rhetoric are fascinating

and intriguing because of what the ancient rhetoricians had

to remember, how much they had to remember, and how

they had to remember it. Memory and being able to

remember and recall information was a crucial part of oral

cultures and societies. I believe that there were several

ways in which ancient rhetoricians memorized speeches,

and there are ways in which what they memorized was

carried on into other areas of rhetoric such as arrangement, style, delivery (Cicero 283). I believe

that rhetoricians such as Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero may have had great input as to

how speeches were memorized based on how they were constructed, in addition, they believed

that oral tradition and memorization has a great deal of impact when it comes to education and

rhetoric in general.

I would have also added an elaborate detailed history on memory here, because the need for memory had become of great importance in developing societies. As a culture or society expands, the need to remember certain places, ideas, objects, and stories became greater throughout time.

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I also plan on using a memory game or activity where students have to remember

something I have told them, they cannot write this quote on paper because it will require the full

use of their auditory skills, and then other students will have to correct other students if they

believe the information is incorrect. I want these students to feel as if they are members of an

actual oral culture. This will act as a scaffold for any writing activities, essays, or quizzes the

students might have in class. The learning outcome is that students will comprehend how

memory worked in a society which had no form of written communication and had to rely on

their auditory and mnemonic devices for everything they had to learn. I think memory in

education is still necessary especially for those of us (my fellow colleagues and I) taking

Comprehensive Exams next quarter, and I address this because I know that students, as well as

professors, are still inclined to remember what we have learned for any exams which may come

around. In nearly anything we do, there is some kind of memorization which is required of us, so

I believe memorization in education is still necessary. The ancient Greeks, in similarity to other

societies, began as an oral society which would one day

begin using writing and literacy in order to expand and

develop their growing culture, although, what has this done

to oral tradition?

According to Socrates, writing destroys memory, “for this

invention (writing) will produce forgetfulness in the minds

of those who learn to use it, because they will not practice

their memory. Their trust in writing, produced by external

characters which are no part of themselves, will discourage the use of their own memory within

them. You have invented an elixir not of memory, but of reminding; and you offer your pupils

Apparently, this had been a concern of Socrates, as it may have been with certain people of his era, and I believe his concerns to have been valid. Memory has proved to be a concern for people throughout centuries; however, I do not believe writing is solely to blame for the loss of oral tradition and memory.

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the appearance of wisdom, not true wisdom, for they will read many things without instruction

and will therefore seem to know many things, when they are for the most part ignorant and hard

to get along with, since they are not wise, but only appear wise” (Plato 165). Due to this fear of

writing, many of the sophists and rhetoricians did not believe in writing, however, they knew that

this would sooner or later become the new form of technology used as education for students

who were learning rhetoric. I believe writing and memory should coexist, and without both of

them, society does not progress People have difficulty expanding on knowledge they previously

had, or have yet to gain.

Memory is as important today as it has been for centuries and into our current education

system. Based on Plato’s Phaedrus and rhetorical theories from Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and

Cicero, I wish to explore the usages of memory in rhetoric, and how memory and mnemonic

devices were used then, and how they are used now. I also

wish to explore how oral cultures used memory, and how

they arranged, stylized, and delivered speeches.

Mythology and cultural stories also play a role in memory,

and these were used to keep oral traditions and

information intact.

Educators and mentors need to ensure memory and

oral traditions remain prevalent in the current education

system because educators endeavor students to remain

conscious and informed of their cultural histories and

background.

This area of the essay may not have been necessary or should have been switched with the second paragraph, although I felt it was important to address this issue based on those experiences at the time. I defend this portion of the essay because I currently know this to be a problem in schools. I have recently tutored at a middle school and an elementary school where a good majority of students had difficulty recalling information because they believed they could use their tablets or smart phones to locate said information.

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We also want students to value memory because without their memory they tend to have

trouble on exams and difficulty writing papers, and this is when writer’s and test anxiety begin to

settle in, and I know this based on personal experience with learning and learning disorders. I

have test anxiety, and I tutor students with writing and test anxiety. Students, even in the current

world, need to be able to recall information when it is necessary in order to demonstrate what

they know, and how they can better analyze that information.

I have created a lesson plan and activity that will demonstrate to students how memory

and oral tradition work by using a short quote from Nikola Tesla (it was a quote a student of

mine had given me that serves as the inspiration for this lesson plan). Nikola Tesla’s quote also

comments on memory, and so it seems fitting for this activity. However, before I address the

lesson plan, I believe that it is necessary to discuss some background information on this lesson

plan, and how I developed the idea for it.

The Greek rhetoricians used metonym in oral tradition, and Foley defined it “as a mode of

signification wherein the part stands of the whole… a situation in which a text or version is

enriched by an unspoken context that dwarfs the textual artifact” (1991:7) (Quick “The

Metonym: Rhetoric and Oral Tradition at the Crossroads”). In addition, she goes on to say:

“We can trace the rhetorical study of metonymy back to the ancient Greek

rhetoricians, who considered it one of the major tropes. […] More recently,

rhetoric has recognized the cognitive function of metonymy, starting with the

work of Kenneth Burke, who identified metonymy as one of the four master

tropes that play a role in discovering truth (along with metaphor, synecdoche, and

irony). […] As a persuasive tool, metonymy allows a rhetor to tap into shared

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associations with his or her audience” (Quick “The Metonym: Rhetoric and Oral

Tradition at the Crossroads”).

This serves an important purpose because Cicero also brings metonym to the forefront in Orator

saying “the latter is called ‘hypallage’ by the rhetoricians, because as it were words are

exchanged’ the grammarians call it ‘metonymy’ because nouns are transferred. Aristotle,

however, classifies them all under metaphor and includes also the misuse of terms, which they

call ‘catachresis,’ for example, when we say ‘minute’ mind instead of ‘small’; and we misuse

related words on occasion either because this gives us pleasure or because it is appropriate”

(Cicero 342). In Virginia Cox’s article “Ciceronian Rhetoric in Italy, 1260-1350,” she states “at

the same time, rudimentary teachings on delivery and memory begin to make an appearance in

dictaminal works, such as Boncompagno da Signa's eccentric Rhetorica novissima (1235), or

Bene da Firenze's more measured Candelabrum (c. 1220-26), which presents itself less as a

guide to epistolography than as a general instruction in oral and written discourse” (254). This

gives us an idea as to how important memory was in rhetorical tradition and how it will still

serve a purpose in the years and centuries to come.

Lesson: “Remember This! Memory and Oral Tradition in the Classroom”

Background: Students will have read Plato’s Phaedrus and Gilgamesh before doing this

assignment. Students will have also read articles on oral tradition and memory in order to

understand how oral traditions are passed down through generations.

Activity: In order to understand how memory and oral traditions work, and how well

students can remember what they are told, students will memorize this small quote, and then

correct other students over time if they have not memorized it correctly:

“There is no memory or retentive faculty based on lasting impression.

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What we designate as memory is but increased responsiveness to repeated stimuli.”

--Nikola Tesla, “Nikola Tesla Quote,” BrainyQuote.

This is a short quote, but it should be simple enough for students to remember in a short amount

of time. They will only have one or two class sessions to memorize this, and they will not be able

to write this down because I want them to use their auditory skills to memorize this quote. I will

say it to them a few times, about three to five times at the most, and they will have to use their

auditory and mnemonic skills to memorize this quote.

Students have several ways of being able to remember this quote. They may come up

with their own mnemonic devices such as singing, rhythmic counting, saying it to themselves

repeatedly over and over again, nursery rhyme, or any other type of method they can think of in

order to help them remember this quote. It is believed that some cultures used singing and

rhythmic counting methods in order to help them remember a certain story or something that

they needed to remember.

This activity will be similar to the old game “Telephone,” where students or people have

to relay a message from one person to another by whispering that message in their ear. In this

case, the students will be able to speak aloud to each other because this will demonstrate to them

how messages, stories, and information were passed from one person to another, and how the

information can be difficult to pass down because stories can change and information can change

based on what was said from one person to another. I want students to understand that passing

down information orally and accurately is not as simple as they might think it will be, and that

with today’s technology, many of them may have trouble remembering everything that they have

been told.

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When stories were passed down, these stories were often passed down to many people at

one time because people would listen to these stories in their tribes and groups, and I want these

students to understand how that would work, “oral traditions, by definition, are recollections and

living memories of the past that have been orally transmitted, recounted and shared throughout

culture. Oral traditions include not only oral history but also poems, myths, riddles, songs,

stories, proverbs and legends to name but a few. They are engraved in the minds and hearts of

the old people who are moving archival repositories” (Kargbo 442). These “old people,” or

elders, had to receive their stories from somewhere, or they had to come up with ways of

formulating these stories, and would have to pass these stories to anyone who would listen, and

the students have to be able to do the same, but they will not do this in quite the same manner as

people in oral cultures would have done this.

Outcomes: Students should have a greater appreciation of how messages, stories, and

information are passed from one person to another, and how difficult it can be to pass down that

information. I realize time can be an issue for this project, and I realize I may have to adjust the

activity depending on how many students I have, and how they will respond to an activity such

as this one. I hope students will use this activity as a way to evaluate what they can remember,

how much, and what they can remember. I also hope this will help them understand how much

time they will need to write papers based on how much they can retain in their memories, and

how long it will take them to study for exams. I would like my students to use this activity to

write a paper on memory, and what their experience were with their memory after this activity.

Essay Questions: How did this activity shape their knowledge of how their minds retain

certain information? How easy or how difficult was it for the students to remember what they

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have learned? What did this activity teach them about how their memories work? How

accurately did they remember the information they were given?

This will be a 2 to 3 page short paper. They will answer these questions and other

questions that I might have on memorization, and in a concise and analytical style address what

this experience on memorization has been like for them.

I might also show my students short videos on how memory and oral traditions worked,

and how they would work in situations where writing, reading, and nearly any form of

technology, would be out of their reach. They would not be able to turn to their smart phones or

any other electronic devices for this activity. I want them to rely on their auditory skills. I realize

that if I have a student(s) who is hearing impaired, that I might have to assign a different activity,

however, for those students who have their auditory functions; I believe this is a perfect activity

for them. This will also help them realize where their strengths and weaknesses might be in

terms of their auditory and memory skills.

I have not had time to teach this to a class of students, but if I had I would have

documented the results, and I am not sure what the findings might be, but given how many

students rely on writing and technology to memorize what they are doing, I can imagine this

assignment might pose some challenges. I don’t know how much they will remember or what

they will remember. I want the students to have a genuine knowledge of how memory and oral

traditions work, and what kind of purpose they served both historically and in modern society.

I believe that this activity will be accessible to high school juniors and seniors, and

college freshmen and sophomores because they can use this activity to evaluate how their own

memories operate, and how an activity such as this one can help them on essays and exams.

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Students are commonly overwhelmed with the amount of information required for memorization,

and knowing what to remember and how to remember it

is crucial when taking any exam and when writing

papers. This can also come in handy when students need

to avoid plagiarism. Students need to remember where

certain quotes and phrases came from so as to not have

that leak into a paper, and then be accused of accidental

plagiarism. This can be a problem in a society relies so

much on technology and writing to remember

everything a student has learned.

I will also have the students watch a TED Talk

on memory, and how memory can also be deceptive. This is a presentation held by Elizabeth

Loftus, she addresses what people can and cannot remember, how their memories can be false,

and how information can be distorted. I want students to understand how memory and the details

of their memories can hold power in different situations. It is important to understand how

memories work especially in a situation where someone’s life could be in jeopardy. She

addresses false memories and how those memories can pose a problem in certain situations. She

discusses the issue of a man who was falsely accused of rape and lost everything because of this,

and due to his vague memory of the situation, convicted of said rape.

Loftus’s speech ties in with what Gorgias discusses in Encomium of Helen. In Gorgias’s

Encomium of Helen, he also addresses the issue of memory and how this was important for men

and for speech in rhetoric, “for if all men on all subjects had [both] memory of things past and

[awareness] of things present and foreknowledge of the future, speech would not be similarly

At the time I had written this essay, I had a student who had been sent to me because she had committed accidental plagiarism in one of her papers, and because of this I realized memory was essential in a situation such as this one. I also tutored students at a middle school who believed plagiarism was okay, but once I told them of a former college student of mine, they began to think twice about it. I also explained why it was important for them to remember what they just read. I feel an example such as this may have served a higher purpose in this paper.

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similar, since as things are now it is not easy for them to recall the past nor to consider the

present nor to predict the future” (45). Gorgias is stating that memory is not always accurate;

however, it is necessary in order to communicate with others be it for records, entertainment,

storytelling, or any other area where memory might serve a purpose. Gorgias is not proposing

that people have memory of all things that happened, because this might be an impossibility. He

is stating we need to remember as much as we can in order to address our fellow human beings

in the manner which we see fitting.

In Plato’s Phaedrus, Socrates states having a memory and recollection of those

memories, and being able to remember in great detail and being able to give truthful details can

make a man just and wise:

“For a human being must understand a general conception formed by

collecting into a unity by means of reason the many perceptions of the senses; and

this is a recollection of those things which our soul once beheld, when it

journeyed with God and, lifting its vision above the things which we now say

exist, rose up into real being. […] Now a man who employs such memories

rightly is always being initiated into perfect mysteries and he alone becomes truly

perfect; but since he separates himself from human interests and turns his

attention toward the divine, he is rebuked by the vulgar, who consider him mad

and do not know that he is inspired” (150-1).

Socrates is discussing the importance of memory, how remembering, be it remembering

accurately or inaccurately, can bring a person closer to divinity, and how this can make them a

more righteous person because they wish to see truth. If memory is used accurately, and used for

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the right reasons, then this use of memory is best used for the betterment of humanity. (In

addition: having a perfect memory can help an individual in times where it is necessary to have

access to information which may be needed to save a person’s life or help a person in a difficult

situation.)

Oral traditions can also be seen as “walking encyclopedias” according to John Abdul

Kargbo. In his article “Oral Traditions and Libraries”, he claims “to buttress the value of oral

traditions in Africa, Amadi (1997) wrote that Africans have long possessed ‘walking

encyclopedias,’ proto-libraries or libraries without shelves-not in terms of the paperless

pushbutton modern systems but in terms of human memory constituting society’s cultural

repertoire (209)” (Kargbo 443). Many ancient societies and cultures, and even a few today, still

rely on oral tradition and memory to pass down stories and keep their cultures alive. There are

also certain Native American tribes that for the longest time have used oral tradition to keep their

stories alive, “There are many versions of each of these Creation stories and, in an oral tradition

that is as it should be. However, to commit them to writing I had to choose one or, in some cases,

link two or three. The emphasis here is on the spirit of the story and the teachings that one might

derive from it” (Pritchard, Introduction xxiii). Slowly, many of these cultures have been

documenting and transferring their stories into written format; however, these stories still live on

in the minds of many of the people who live in these tribal or oral cultures. It appears as though

oral traditions will never truly go away because there will always be a great need for them when

it comes to keeping certain traditions and cultures alive.

Finally, I will conclude by stating oral tradition and memory help keep cultures alive, but

they also help students academically, especially on essays and exams. Lessons on memorization

and oral tradition can help students understand their own learning styles and techniques. There

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are other activities instructors can use for their students; although, I believe these lessons should

give students an understanding of how memory functions and how it can be used in their

scholastic careers and in their everyday lives. In an age of technology, being able to remember

what happened is still a valuable tool especially when someone’s life may depend on it, or when

the need for it arises. Students have to be able to call upon whatever knowledge they have when

the situation calls for it. Oral Traditions can still hold much value in our society because they

allow us to understand and comprehend how knowledge is passed on from one person to another

or from one group of people to another. Memorization will always be an issue people will have

to deal with, so long as exams, essays, and areas where the written word are still concerned.

References

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Carter, Aidan Foster. “Flawed Oral Tradition: Letters.” The Times Higher Education Supplement

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Cicero. Orator. Bizzell, Patricia, and Bruce Herzberg. The Rhetorical Tradition: Readings from

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Frentz, Thomas S. “Memory, Myth, and Rhetoric in Plato's ‘Phaedrus’.” Rhetoric Society

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