The rhetorical stasis questions are usually meant to differentiate _kinds_ of argument, but they also help with [[rhetorical structure]]. #### The Four Rhetorical Stasis Questions The **stasis questions** as follows: > Arguments of **fact**. _Did something happen?_ Arguments of **definition**. _What is the nature of the thing?_ Arguments of **evaluation**. _What is the quality of the thing?_ Arguments of **proposal**. _What actions should be taken?_ These are usually presented as mutually exclusive for different types of arguments: **_either_** you write an argument of fact **_or_** you write an argument of definition **_or_** you write an argument of evaluation **_or_** you write a proposal argument. #### Stasis Questions & Structure However, though arguments may focus more or less on one of the four questions, **all speeches tend to cover all four questions—at least briefly**. They also tend to cover them in the same order and in the same relative places. This has implications for your [[rhetorical structure]]. _First_ you cover whether something happened, and _then_ you cover the nature or definition of it, and _then_ the quality of it, and _then_ you cover what we should do about it—**it's just a matter of how much time you spend on each one.** * If you're writing an **argument of fact** (the "first" question), then you'll probably at least allude to the latter three questions in your [[peroratio]] or conclusion. * If you're writing an **argument of definition** (the "second" question), then you'll probably cover the facts in your [[narratio]] (i.e., the "statement of facts"), and then you'll spend the bulk of your [[confirmatio]] on the definition, and then you'll suggest some ideas about the quality and "what we might do about this" aspects in your [[peroratio]] or conclusion. * If you're writing an **argument of quality** (the "third" question), then you'll probably cover the facts _and_ definition in your [[narratio]], and then you'll spend the bulk of your [[confirmatio]] on the quality/evaluation thing. Then, based on that, your [[peroratio]] might briefly and tentatively propose some actions we might do in response. * Finally, if you're writing a proposal argument (the "last" question), then you'll probably cover the first three (did something happen? what is its definition? what is its quality?) early on, in your [[narratio]]. The rest of the speech is then dedicated to what actions we should do. This gif generally illustrates this idea: ![[stasis_questions_and_rhetorical_structure.gif]] #### Rhetorical Structure & Time The nature of this idea is very congruent with other aspects of [[rhetorical structure]] and time, in that speeches tend to follow a past-present-future pattern. First, you talk about the past, then you talk about the present, and then you talk about the future. Like the stasis questions, how much time you dedicate to each one depends on your topic. In a proposal argument, for example, most of the speech is about the future—but you'll very likely still cover the past at least _briefly_ in your [[narratio]]. See also: * [[the beginning of a speech is typically oriented toward the past]] * [[the end of a speech is oriented towards the future]]