Modern Rhetorical Theory

With special attention to the rhetor-audience relationship, the course studies history and practice of modern rhetorical theory. The main idea is that you learn the classical elements of rhetoric in some detail and then practice applying them to contemporary texts, whether they are the ones you are writing or analyzing. I think you should use this course so you can better understand not only rhetoric, but other areas of study that you are interested in, whether it be technology, popular culture, or a discipline outside of English. Make this course work for you.

Applen, J.D. University of Central Florida. Academic>Courses>Theory>Rhetoric

On Material Rhetorics and the Canon of Memoria: Rethinking the History (and Future) of Rhetoric  

This presentation looks to the past to explain the present lack of attention given to memory and to imagine a possible future for the canon in contemporary rhetoric with the inclusion of the study of material rhetorics, or a comprehensive inquiry of situated things produced in cultural contexts that investigates both the material dimension in rhetoric and rhetorical dimension in the material. To this end, this essay summarizes noted reasons for memoria's limited study in contemporary rhetoric; revisits classic rhetoric's memoria and mines it for features worth recuperating for contemporary study; introduces material rhetoric and its potential to recuperate memoria in light of these features; and calls for further discussion of material rhetoric, the canon of memory, and the place of both in the study of rhetoric.

Haas, Angela. Michigan State University (2007). Articles>Rhetoric>History>Theory

Persuasion In Technical Communication: Applying Symbolic Interactionism  

Symbolic interactionism provides technical communicators with a persuasive tool that facilitates effective communication. By treating meaning as a socially negotiated and negotiable product rather than apart of language, technical communicators can more easily persuade readers to follow instructions, to grant proposals, or to accept reports. By taking the sources of meaning away from objects and away from symbols per se, symbolic interaction empowers the technical communicator with the means to effectively communicate and persuade.

Ray, Eric J. STC Proceedings (1994). Presentations>Rhetoric>Theory

Rethinking Genre in School and Society: An Activity Theory Analysis  

This article attempts to expand and elaborate theories of social 'context' and formal schooling, to understand the stakes involved in writing. It first sketches ways Russian activity theory in the tradition of A. N. Leont'ev may expand Bakhtinian dialogism, then elaborates the theory in terms of North American genre research, with examples drawn from research on writing in the disciplines in higher education. By tracing the relations of disciplinary genre systems to educational genre systems, through the boundary of the classroom genre system, the analyst/reformer can construct a model of the interactions of classroom practices with wider social practices. Activity theory analysis of genre systems may offer a theoretical bridge between the sociology of education and Vygotskian social psychology of classroom interaction, and contribute toward resolving the knotty problem of the relation of macro- and microstructure in literacy research based on various social theories of 'context.'

Russell, David R. Written Communication (1997). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory>Rhetoric

The Rhetoric of Decision Science, or Herbert A. Simon Says  

The tools of decision science are widely used and accepted in industrial and governmental decision making. But...

Miller, Carolyn R. North Carolina State University (1991). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory

Rhetorical Shifts in Author/Audience Roles on the World-Wide Web

Audience analysis figures prominently into Technical Communication curricula because the focus of technical communication is to take complex technical information and create materials that can help readers use, learn, repair, or build equipment or systems (Alred et al. 2). In order to help readers perform these specialized tasks, we must be intimately familiar with their real and anticipated needs, expectations, and limitations. Many different models of the author/audience relationship have been proposed to aid in this analysis. These models have worked well (depending on what school of thought one subscribed to) when the main delivery system consisted of print media.

Bartell, Sandy. Orange Journal, The (2001). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory

Rhetorical Theory Discussion Group

Open to teachers, students, practitioners, or the idly curious. Discussion of both pure theory and practical applications of theory are welcome. Topics include (but are not limited to): Technical communication, The Sophists, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle , Cicero, Quintilian, Augustine, Boethius, Christine de Pisan, Laura Cereta, Desiderius Erasmus, Peter Ramus, Francis Bacon, John Locke, George Campbell, Friedrich Nietzsche, Mikhail Bakhtin, I. A. Richards, Ernst Cassirer, Kenneth Burke, Richard Weaver, Chaim Perelman, Stephen Toulmin, Michel Foucalt, Jacques Derrida, Helene Cixous, Julia Kristeva, Kenneth A. Bruffee, Rachel Spilka, Thomas Kuhn, Carolyn Miller, Jakob Nielsen, Edward R. Tufte, Langdon Winner.

Yahoo. Resources>Mailing Lists>Theory>Rhetoric

The Role of Social Construction in Technical Communication

Technical communicators perform an important role in society, relaying complex messages in a clear and concise manner to people who would otherwise have to spend an inordinate amount of time tracking down this information for themselves. Among other things, technical communicators are responsible for writing software manuals and computer help systems, instruction manuals for everything from appliances to airplanes, and health-related pamphlets and warnings. If this information is misunderstood – either through the shortcomings of the writer or reader – the consequences can be devastating.

Robinson, Alyssa. Orange Journal, The (2001). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory

Seeing and Using Theories for Design  

In recent years, the subject of research has attracted much attention within the field of design. In this discussion, suggestion has been made about the importance of descriptive/explanatory theory for the practice of design. Given that design is prescriptive by nature, between description and prescription, there is a gap. The gap suggests that the function and value of theory in design practice and thus its evaluation require further examination, clarification and demonstration. The practical value of theory in scientific inquiry is unquestionable. Theory is often referred as the foundation of sciences. Since the immediate goal of scientific practice is different from that of design practice, can the same be said about theory for design? Taking a perspective of a designer, my starting point is that theory, like any information, needs to be brought to life by our way of seeing and using it. Through reflecting on how I have evaluated and used developmental theories for a conceptual design of HIV prevention communication. I will bring up the issue of user in theory evaluation, attempt to demonstrate theory is (made) useful (by)/to designing and put into perspective the value of descriptive/explanatory theory to designing.

Chow, Rosan. University of Alberta (2003). Design>Document Design>Theory>Visual Rhetoric

Spatial and Visual Rhetorics

Both spatial and visual rhetorics attend to issues of boundaries. From the structure of our classroom spaces to the margins of the page, rhetoric and compositionist are investigating the ways spatial and visual experiences are impacting our work as teachers and scholars.

Kimme Hea, Amy C. University of Arizona (2005). Resources>Education>Cultural Theory>Visual Rhetoric

A Study of Theories on Style in Technical Communication

One of the most frequent questions technical communicators encounter is what style they should write in. Unfortunately it is not an easy question. The answer to this question should come from careful theoretical studies and deliberate analysis of the audience and many other factors, such as social environment. In this paper, I wish to analyze theories, which guide the style in technical communication, from three angles: reader analysis, interpretive communities and whether technical communication is plain, instructional, or rhetorical. In the conclusion section, I will try to analyze the importance of extracting valuable parts from each theory and how the valid points from each theory work together to guide technical communicators to choose the right style in technical communication.

Sun, Lily. Orange Journal, The (2001). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory

Talking with Virginia Postrel

Postrel's new book, The Substance of Style, explores the economic, cultural, social, personal, and political implications of the growing importance of aesthetics in business and society.

MacLaughlin, Steve. Boxes and Arrows (2003). Articles>Graphic Design>Cultural Theory>Visual Rhetoric

Text Models in the USA and The Netherlands  

Text models are handy tools for planning or recognizing the global structure of a text. In this paper we compare a few modern communication handbooks in the USA and The Netherlands as to their treatment of text models. The Dutch “vaste structure” may contribute to the tool kit of American technical writers. After that we present a short discussion of the characteristics of ideal text models and their ideal users. The first text model in history, the classical 'partes orationis,' and the first text models for Environmental Impact Statements from the 1970’s prove to possess a series of deficiencies. We conclude our paper with a proposed procedure for pretesting new text models for new documents.

Bulter, Willem J. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>Language>Theory>Rhetoric

Textual Performance: Where the Action at a Distance Is  

Rhetoric's concern for individual sense making is expressed in such topics as the nature and role of enthymemes, the character and disposition of audiences, figures of thought, and the psychological underpinnings of arrangement. Persuasion, as a movement of the mind, depends on individual sense-making even though this dependency isn't always made explicit for analytic scrutiny. Rhetoric's attitude toward sense making is shaped by rhetoric's orgins in oral performance which leaves no artifact (except for the occasional script or transcription that Plato has so much fun with in the Phaedrus) but which confronts rhetors with embodied audiences whose minds they have to move, and audiences are confronted with embodied rhetors who appear to be thinking about one thing and then a moment later thinking about something else. The fleeting meaning held in the rhetor's mind communicated to the audience transfigure and unite them both for a moment, then soon dissipates as thought and attention turn to various elsewheres. Such is the flow of life noted by the sophists.

Bazerman, Charles. UCSB. Articles>Rhetoric>Theory

Toward a Critical Perspective of Culture: Contrast or Compare Rhetorics    

Kaplan's framework of contrastive rhetoric has been widely accepted in the field of cross-cultural technical communication. However, in the last four decades, contextual factors such as economic globalization trend and the advances of communication technologies are changing our ways of interacting with others. As a result our understanding of culture and cultural differences need to be adjusted. In this research, I start by recommending a workable definition of culture in the present context—culture as a process, which establishes a foundation for cross-cultural rhetorical research in the new era when communication across cultures transcends national boundaries. Based on the critical perspective of culture, I continue to point out the limitations of contrastive rhetoric and argue that contrastive rhetoric's view of culture and its research purpose and methodology need to be modified to overcome its constraints and better meet the needs of the present social context.

Wang, Junhua. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2008). Articles>Language>Rhetoric>Cultural Theory

Understanding Metaphors for Writing: In Defense of the Conduit Metaphor    

The Conduit Metaphor has been roundly condemned by language scholars, including scholars in rhetoric and composition, but it is time to reevaluate its import and value. Rather than simply asserting a mistaken view of linguistic communication, the Conduit Metaphor combines with the metaphor Language Is Power to form a prudentially applied ethical measure of discourses, genres, and texts.

Eubanks, Philip. CCC (2001). Articles>Rhetoric>Theory>Tropes

О Риторическом Контексте Проблемы Истины

Прежде всего, о чем мы ведем речь, говоря об истине? Не стоит ли договориться о различении "истины" и "истинности". Обычно под истиной понимается любое истинное суждение. Сказать о некотором суждении, что оно истинно, или сказать, что данное суждение есть истина, не одно ли это и то же? Но это как раз тот случай, когда предположение синонимии свидетельствует о неполноте наших знаний о мире. Синонимия, предполагающая тождество смыслов, является насилием над живым языком и по отношению к естественному языку применима лишь в очевидно ограниченном смысле - как характеристика семантической близости слов. Тождество слов в живом языке такая же немыслимая вещь, как и тождество живых существ в природе.

Migunov, A.I. Argumentation (2002). (Russian) Articles>Rhetoric>Theory