Much of the scholarly exchange regarding the history of women in
rhetoric has emphasized women's rhetorical practices. In
"Conversational Rhetoric: The Rise and Fall of a Women's Tradition,
1600-1900," Jane Donawerth traces the historical development of
rhetorical theory by women for women, studying the moments when
women produced theory about the arts of communication in
alternative genres--humanist treatises and dialogues, defenses of
women's preaching, conduct books, and elocution handbooks. She
examines the relationship between communication and gender and
between theory and pedagogy and argues that women constructed a
theory of rhetoric based on conversation, not public speaking, as a
model for all discourse.
Donawerth traces the development of women's rhetorical theory
through the voices of English and American women (and one
much-translated French woman) over three centuries. She
demonstrates how they cultivated theories of rhetoric centered on
conversation that faded once women began writing composition
textbooks for mixed-gender audiences in the latter part of the
nineteenth century. She recovers and elucidates the importance of
the theories in dialogues and defenses of women's education by
Bathsua Makin, Mary Astell, and Madeleine de Scudery; in conduct
books by Hannah More, Lydia Sigourney, and Eliza Farrar; in
defenses of women's preaching by Ellen Stewart, Lucretia Mott,
Catherine Booth, and Frances Willard; and in elocution handbooks by
Anna Morgan, Hallie Quinn Brown, Genevieve Stebbins, and Emily
Bishop. In each genre, Donawerth explores facets of women's
rhetorical theory, such as the recognition of the gendered nature
of communication in conduct books, the incorporation of the
language of women's rights in the defenses of women's preaching,
and the adaptation of sentimental culture to the cultivation of
women's bodies as tools of communication in elocution books.
Rather than a linear history, "Conversational Rhetoric" follows the
starts, stops, and starting over in women's rhetorical theory. It
covers a broad range of women's rhetorical theory in the
Anglo-American world and places them in their social, rhetorical,
and gendered historical contexts. This study adds women's
rhetorical theory to the rhetorical tradition, advances our
understanding of women's theories and their use of rhetoric, and
offers a paradigm for analyzing the differences between men's and
women's rhetoric from 1600 to 1900.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
