Fall. 2000
Prof. S. Michael Halloran
Sage 4207
X8847
We
all engage in critical discussions of the many events that make up our
symbolic world. We watch a political convention on TV, for example, and
we talk for hours about what motivated the convention planners and whether
the choices they made were “good” or “bad.” Rhetorical criticism (or analysis)
is the professional work of getting more methodical and rigorous about
this everyday activity. Academic rhetorical critics usually try to make
explicit the theoretical bases for their analyses and judgments, and they
often use critical analysis as a means of advancing theory. The analytical
methods used by rhetorical critics may also prove useful for other purposes;
transcripts of conversations taken in an ethnographic project, for example,
might be analyzed to discover stylistic proclivities or tacit argumentative
premises that characterize a group.
This
course will introduce you to rhetorical criticism as a major sub-area of
rhetorical studies, and it will provide you an opportunity to do some original
work analyzing particular instances of the persuasive use of symbols. We
will spend some time reading published work in the field, but the major
emphasis will be on developing analytic skills through practice. You will
learn rhetorical analysis by doing it.
Required
Texts
(available in the bookstore):
Hart,
Roderick P. (1997) Modern Rhetorical Criticism second edition. Boston:
Allyn and Bacon.
Corbett,
Edward P.J. and Robert Connors (*) Style and Statement.
Additional
readings will be assigned as appropriate.
This
course presumes a command of standard edited English and the ability to
write a clear and well-organized essay. It will be conducted as a seminar,
which means that everyone is expected to attend all class meetings, to
complete all reading and writing assignments on time, and to participate
in class discussions. There will be no examinations. Final course grades
will be determined by a series of short papers and in-class presentations
and a major course paper. 40% of the final grade will be accounted for
by the aggregate of grades for the short papers and in-class presentations,
60% by the grade for the major course paper, with borderline cases determined
by class participation. Note that while no percentage is assigned for class
participation, it may in the end count for one full letter grade.
The
major course project will be presented in the form of a 10-15 page paper
and a 20 minute oral presentation to the class. This format is meant to
simulate an academic conference presentation, and it is my hope that at
least some of your projects will be suitable for submission to actual conferences.
The paper should be submitted with full documentation in MLA or APA format.
The
academic community is founded on trust. As students, you must be able to
trust your professors to conduct classes in a professionally responsible
manner and to evaluate your work fairly. As a teacher, I must be able to
trust students to be diligent and honest in doing the assigned work. As
scholars, each of us must be able to trust that our colleagues will acknowledge
and respect the contributions we make to the advancement of knowledge.
Any breach of this trust amounts to an assault on the academic community.
Plagiarism – using someone else’s words or ideas in work represented as
one’s own without proper acknowledgment – is a particularly serious breach
of the trust that is essential to the life of the academic community. If
you have any questions about the proper use and documentation of the work
that other scholars have contributed, please ask. If I find that you have
been guilty of plagiarism in any work submitted for this course,
you will be assigned a grade of F for the course and reported to
the Dean of Students.
(Because so much of the semester’s work will be devoted to projects that are yet to be defined, what follows is a bare and tentative outline that we will flesh out together and perhaps revise over the next few weeks.)
Mon.
8-28 – Course introduction and overview
Thurs.
8-31 – An example of non-academic rhetorical analysis: read Al Gore’s acceptance
speech and William Safire’s critique of it (handouts), and be prepared
to discuss them in class.
Mon.
9-4 – No class; Labor Day.
Thurs.
9-7 – Academic rhetorical analysis: read Hart’s Modern Rhetorical Criticism
in toto. Write a brief preliminary statement of what you think you might
like to do for your major course project. (Note that in the weeks to come
we will be rereading Hart chapter by chapter; this first time read the
whole of the book to formulate an overall picture and to help you make
some provisional decisions about the kind of project you would like to
undertake.) Be prepared to discuss both Hart’s views on criticism and your
own thoughts on what sort of project you want to do.
Mon.
9-11 – Rhetorical situations and genres: read Hart, chapters 3 & 6
in detail. Selected students write a brief paper (4-5 pages) applying some
major insights from these chapters to some instance of rhetorical discourse.
Thurs.
9-14 – Situations and genres continued: Bitzer, “The Rhetorical Situation;”
Miller, “Genre as Social Action.”
Mon.
9-18 – Ideas and arguments: read Hart, chapters 4 & 5. Selected students
write a brief paper applying some major insights from these chapters.
Thurs.
9-21
Mon.
9-25 – Syntax, imagery, diction: read Hart, chapters 7 & 8. Short papers.
Thurs.
9-28
Mon.
10-2 – Style: read Corbett and Connors. Short papers.
Thurs.
10-5
Mon.
10-9 – No class meeting.
Tues.
10-10 – Follow Monday class schedule. Media: read Hart, chapter 9. Short
papers.
Thurs.
10-12
Mon.
10-16 – Role criticism: Hart, chapter 10. Short papers.
Thurs.
10-19 – Formal written proposals for major projects due.
Mon.
10-23 – Cultural criticism: Hart, chapter 11. Short papers.
Thurs.
10-26 – In-class discussion of projects.
Mon.
10-30 – Dramatistic criticism: Hart, chapter 12. Short papers.
Thurs.
11-2 – In-class discussion of projects.
Mon.
11-6 – Feminist criticism: Hart, chapter 13. Short papers.
Thurs.
11-9 – No class meeting; SMH is in Seattle for NCA Convention.
Mon.
11-13 – Continental criticism: Hart, chapter 14. Short papers.
Thurs.
11-16
Mon.
11-20
Thurs.
11-23 – No class meeting; Thanksgiving recess.
Mon.
11-27 – In class presentations of major projects.
Thurs.
11-30 – In-class presentations of major projects.
Mon.
12-4 – In-class presentations of major projects.
Thurs.
12-7 – Last class meeting. Final drafts of major project papers due.
Wed.
12-13 – Start of final exams.