A Text centred rhetorical analysis of Paul's Letter to Titus

dichotomy at the front end of this letter (1:9) that is expanded in the
subsequent verses (1:10-16). The dominant rhetorical objective in this section
is to discredit the illegitimate teachers primarily by magnifying their
illegitimacy. The rhetorical technique employed involves vilification of the
illegitimate teachers.
Vilification
Vilification is a persuasive technique used by an author or speaker to present
opposing parties or their viewpoints in a negative light, by magnifying some
aspects of character or propositional weakness, with a view to influence an
audience to disassociate themselves from the opposition or the viewpoint and
associate themselves with or endorse the position or person of the speaker or
writer. Du Toit (1994:404) considers it to have been a “widespread convention
… obtained throughout the Mediterranean world”. Botha (1993:421) calls it
“invective”, which aimed to “dispose hearers favourably to the speaker and to
shame and humiliate the ‘enemy’”. One of the ways in which it was employed,
involved portraying the opposition as those who are perverting the true faith
and who are negative influences for the faith of others (Du Toit, 1994:409). In
order to achieve his dominant rhetorical objective, Paul makes extensive use
of vilification to portray the opposition in a very negative light. The impact and
overall domination of the technique in this section becomes obvious from the
following list:
1. insubordinate, empty talkers,
deceivers (v.10)
2. upsetting whole families (v.11)
3. teaching for gain (v.11)
4. teaching without the right to
teach (v.11)
5. liars/evil beasts/lazy gluttons
(v.12)
6. giving heed to Jewish myths
(v.14)
7. giving heed to the commands of
men who reject the truth (v.14)
8. corrupt and unbelieving (v.15)
9. minds and consciences are
corrupt (v.15)
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10. deny God by their deeds (v.16)
11. detestable, disobedient, unfit
for any good deed (v.16)
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