LessonsSpeaker Eloquence, Rhetorical Speech, and Contextual AppropriatenessQuiz

One must separate evaluation of a particular utterance from evaluation of a speaker's capacity, and also distinguish fasāḥah from balāghah.

Technical descriptionPrimary criterion
Fasāḥat al-kalāmAn utterance free of linguistic and semantic defects
Balāghat al-kalāmAn eloquent utterance fitting its context
Fasāḥat al-mutakallimStable capacity to form eloquent utterances
Balāghat al-mutakallimStable capacity to form contextually suitable eloquent utterances

Kalām concerns a specific expression; mutakallim concerns the speaker’s established ability.

Opening interactive controls...

A coordinated view of four descriptions

Speaker Eloquence, Rhetorical Speech, and Contextual Appropriateness

One must separate evaluation of a particular utterance from evaluation of a speaker's capacity, and also distinguish fasāḥah from balāghah.

Technical descriptionPrimary criterion
Fasāḥat al-kalāmAn utterance free of linguistic and semantic defects
Balāghat al-kalāmAn eloquent utterance fitting its context
Fasāḥat al-mutakallimStable capacity to form eloquent utterances
Balāghat al-mutakallimStable capacity to form contextually suitable eloquent utterances

Kalām concerns a specific expression; mutakallim concerns the speaker’s established ability.