A modern version of stasis: the historical development of a classical theory, and its ramifications as a tool for teaching writing

Abstract

A preconceptual form of stasis can be found in the works of Aristotle and Plato, but it was its formulization as a heuristic that made it integral to rhetorical theory. Upon its conceptualization by Hermagoras, stasis theory, a heuristic developed for use in determining the main issue of a court case, was adapted by the major rhetoricians of the classical period. Though originally based on four questions (fact, definition, quality and objection) the author of the Ad Herennium dropped the stasis of objection because of its legality. This adaptation was followed by most later rhetoricians who wrote treatises on stasis. The classical rhetorician largely responsible for the presence of stasis in the medieval classroom was Hermogenes (2nd century A.D.). Though Hermogenes' treatise was a paraphrase of Hermagoras' work, it was the work most used during the medieval period. It was translated into Italian by George of Trebizond. Stasis theory survived the centuries, and is still present in current textbooks, though it receives little attention. Rather than being used as a heuristic, it is now more often viewed as a method for classifying types of arguments, but stasis theory has a greater use in the modern composition class. Many students are hampered in their search for knowledge by their inability to question their world. Rather than teaching questioning skills, current education methods encourage students to be dependent on secondary sources for information--sources they are expected to accept without question. This inability to question disables students as they search for knowledge, and is obvious in the writing they produce. Teachers constantly bemoan the fact that student writing is shallow, yet without the ability to question the issues they are presenting in their writing, how can students produce anything but empty prose? The classical theory of stasis may provide the means of equipping students with a technique for questioning. This power will be reflected in their writing as their questions reveal the various levels of meaning possible. In addition it will free them from their dependency on secondary knowledge, enabling them to create their own truths in a world of many truths.