This book is an anthology of landmark essays in rhetorical criticism. In historical usage, a landmark marks a path or a boundary; as a metaphor in social and intellectual history, landmark signifies some act or event that marks a significant achievement or turning point in the progress or decline of human effort. In the history of an academic discipline, the historically established senses of landmark are mixed together, jostling to set out and protect the turfmarkers of academic specialization; aligning footnotes to signify the beacons that have guided thought and, against these "conservative" tendencies, attempting to contribute fresh insights that tempt others along new trails.
The editor has chosen essays for this collection that give some sense of the history of rhetorical criticism in this century, especially as it has been practiced in the discipline of speech communication. He also emphasizes materials that may illustrate where the discipline conceives itself to be going -- how it has marked its boundaries; how it has established beacons to invite safety or warn us from the rocks; and how it has sought to preserve a tradition by subjecting it to constant revision and struggle. In the hope of providing some coherence, the scope of this collection is limited to rhetorical criticism as it has been practiced and understood within the discipline of speech communication in North America in this century.

Rhetoric -- the theory of oral discourse -- affected and indeed pervaded all aspects of classical thought. Bearing the stamp of its impact were the Homeric hymns, the Iliad and the Odyssey, Aeschylus' Eumenides, the great dramatic tragedies, the elegiac and lyric poetry, and the literature of the Romans, often formed in the Greek image. The rhetorical notion of probability had direct implications for the classical philosopher and mathematician as it does today. Departments of speech, English, philosophy and classics provide the key centers of interest in the new and the classical rhetorics. Despite the considerable enthusiasm for the study of rhetoric, no single work provides large selections of primary materials written by the classical rhetoricians themselves. Until now, only secondary sources containing tiny excerpts, or entire and expensive translations of the ancient rhetorical writings were available. This large anthology of primary readings of the classical rhetoricians in translation fills this large gap. The continuity and coherence of ancient rhetorical traditions is emphasized by organizing large excerpts into the topical divisions that later classical writers agreed upon. The first unit of this anthology sets forth major issues in the definition and scope of rhetoric, and its appropriate place among other modes of thought and discourse. Parts 2 through 5 are organized according to the traditional canons of oratory -- invention, disposition, style, memory, and delivery. In organizing the readings this way, the editors represent both the philosophical and theoretical issues in rhetoric and its pragmatic functions as a craft for making effective discourse. Selecting excerpts that illustrate the major conflicts within the unfolding tradition enables a sampling of not only the major points of view, but also the arguments supporting them. This volume includes selections not only from writings of the standard classical rhetoricians but also from less typical works which have special value. The editors have utilized the best accessible translations while remaining absolutely faithful to their texts.

Rhetoric -- the theory of oral discourse -- affected and indeed pervaded all aspects of classical thought. Bearing the stamp of its impact were the Homeric hymns, the Iliad and the Odyssey, Aeschylus' Eumenides, the great dramatic tragedies, the elegiac and lyric poetry, and the literature of the Romans, often formed in the Greek image. The rhetorical notion of probability had direct implications for the classical philosopher and mathematician as it does today. Departments of speech, English, philosophy and classics provide the key centers of interest in the new and the classical rhetorics. Despite the considerable enthusiasm for the study of rhetoric, no single work provides large selections of primary materials written by the classical rhetoricians themselves. Until now, only secondary sources containing tiny excerpts, or entire and expensive translations of the ancient rhetorical writings were available. This large anthology of primary readings of the classical rhetoricians in translation fills this large gap. The continuity and coherence of ancient rhetorical traditions is emphasized by organizing large excerpts into the topical divisions that later classical writers agreed upon. The first unit of this anthology sets forth major issues in the definition and scope of rhetoric, and its appropriate place among other modes of thought and discourse. Parts 2 through 5 are organized according to the traditional canons of oratory -- invention, disposition, style, memory, and delivery. In organizing the readings this way, the editors represent both the philosophical and theoretical issues in rhetoric and its pragmatic functions as a craft for making effective discourse. Selecting excerpts that illustrate the major conflicts within the unfolding tradition enables a sampling of not only the major points of view, but also the arguments supporting them. This volume includes selections not only from writings of the standard classical rhetoricians but also from less typical works which have special value. The editors have utilized the best accessible translations while remaining absolutely faithful to their texts.

Now known to the Chinese as the ten years of chaos, the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) brought death to thousands of Chinese and persecution to millions. Rhetoric of the Chinese Cultural Revolution identifies the rhetorical features and explores the persuasive effects of political language and symbolic practices during the period. Xing Lu examines how leaders of the Communist Party constructed and enacted a rhetoric in political contexts to legitimize power and violence and to dehumanize a group of people identified as class enemies. Lu provides close readings of the movement's primary texts - political slogans, official propaganda, wall posters, and the lyrics of mass songs and model operas. She also scrutinizes such ritualistic practices as the loyalty dance, denunciation rallies, political study sessions, and criticism and self-criticism meetings. that of her family, as well as with interviews conducted in China and the United States with persons who experienced the Cultural Revolution during their teenage years. Through rhetorical analyses Lu addresses the questions of why such a cultural holocaust happened in China, how speech became so cultic and politicized, and how the rhetoric of fanaticism induced terror and mass hysteria. Lu contends that the rhetoric of the Cultural Revolution has impacted Chinese thought, culture, and communication in ominous ways. In the name of defending Mao's revolutionary cause, the Cultural Revolution polarized Chinese thought through its deployment of moralistic terms, filled human relationships with hatred and mistrust, and replaced rich a artistic expression with formulaic political jargon and tedious ideological cliches. To illustrate the severity of the revolution's after-effects, Lu examines public discourse in contemporary China and compares the rhetoric of the Cultural Revolution with that of Stalinist Russia and Nazi Germany.

In the last three decades ordinary Americans launched numerous grassroots commemorations and official historical institutions became more open to popular participation. In this first book-length study of participatory memory practices, Ekaterina V. Haskins critically examines this trend by asking how and with what consequences participatory forms of commemoration have reshaped the rhetoric of democratic citizenship. Approaching commemorations as both representations of civic identity and politically consequential sites of stranger interaction, Popular Memories investigates four distinct examples of participatory commemoration: the United States Postal Service's "Celebrate the Century" stamp and education program, the September 11 Digital Archive, the first post-Katrina Carnival in New Orleans, and a traveling memorial to the human cost of the Iraq War. Despite differences in sponsorship, genre, historical scope, and political purpose, all of these commemorations relied on voluntary participation of ordinary citizens in selecting, producing, or performing interpretations of distant or recent historical events. These collectively produced interpretations - or popular memories - in turn prompted interactions between people, inviting them to celebrate, to mourn, or to bear witness. The book's comparison of the four case studies suggests that popular memories make for stronger or weaker sites of civic engagement depending on whether or not they allow for public affirmation of the individual citizen's contribution and for experiencing alternative identities and perspectives. By systematically accounting for grassroots memory practices, consumerism, tourism, and rituals of popular identity, Haskins's study enriches our understanding of contemporary memory culture and citizenship.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

Reassesses the philosophical and pedagogical contributions of Protagoras Protagoras and Logos brings together in a meaningful synthesis the contributions and rhetoric of the first and most famous of the Older Sophists, Protagoras of Abdera. Most accounts of Protagoras rely on the somewhat hostile reports of Plato and Aristotle. By focusing on Protagoras's own surviving words, this study corrects many long-standing misinterpretations and presents significant facts: Protagoras was a first-rate philosophical thinker who positively influenced the theories of Plato and Aristotle, and Protagoras pioneered the study of language and was the first theorist of rhetoric. In addition to illustrating valuable methods of translating and reading fifth-century B.C.E. Greek passages, the book marshals evidence for the important philological conclusion that the Greek word translated as rhetoric was a coinage by Plato in the early fourth century. In this second edition, Edward Schiappa reassesses the philosophical and pedagogical contributions of Protagoras. Schiappa argues that traditional accounts of Protagoras are hampered by mistaken assumptions about the Sophists and the teaching of the art of rhetoric in the fifth century. He shows that, contrary to tradition, the so-called Older Sophists investigated and taught the skills of logos, which is closer to modern conceptions of critical reasoning than of persuasive oratory. Schiappa also offers interpretations for each of Protagoras's major surviving fragments and examines Protagoras's contributions to the theory and practice of Greek education, politics, and philosophy. In a new afterword Schiappa addresses historiographical issues that have occupied scholars in rhetorical studies over the past ten years, and throughout the study he provides references to scholarship from the last decade that has refined his views on Protagoras and other Sophists.

This authoritative anthology will put to rest the general impression that traditional rhetoric had little impact during the years between the death of St. Augustine and Bracciolini s rediscovery of Quintilian. Although little was added to the corpus of material called rhetoric, this discipline nonetheless played an important part as it was brought to bear on new areas of practical need. By presenting 36 rhetorical treatises many translated into English for the first time from nearly every century of the period 430 to 1416 A.D., the editors make clear the diversity of interest as well as the continuity of approach that marked the rhetoric of the Middle Ages."