Evoke

Here is a style of rhetoric I’ve been thinking about. No convincing, no agenda, and no specific audience in mind.

Just state the premises, sketch out the interconnections if needed but, don’t draw out the conclusions.

This style feels aphoristic, vague and pretentious even. That’s a bit sad, I wish it didn’t come off that way.

But this way we don't limit the reader's imagination.

Art doesn’t limit imagination, but sometimes warrants too much from it. Words provide better precision, but sometimes limit the imagination too much.

Spoon fed examples, analogies and conclusions make it harder for the reader to see further than (at best) the author's mind.

Instead of conveying meaning the aim is to trigger analogous processes in the reader’s mind.

Manav Rathi
Nov 2023