SPC 3230 - History of Rhetorical Theory Syllabus - Fall 2017

Course Description: This course is a theoretical-historical review of writings about rhetoric in the Western tradition up through the Enlightenment. It is based upon the assumption that there is no single, stable entity in that tradition called " rhetoric. " Instead, different writers organize that term in relationship to terms referencing other discourses and practices. Each way of situating rhetoric in a world of texts and action is also a way of understanding human experience in general. This course will cover various important figures in the history of rhetoric. We start our investigation with the thinkers from ancient Greece-Plato, Protagoras, Gorgias, Isocrates, and Aristotle. We will examine what they believe rhetoric is, what its value is, and what role it should play in ethics and politics. Important thinkers from the Roman world will also be examined. We'll talk about how Cicero, Quintilian, and various stoics conceptualized and practiced rhetoric. Augustine, Christine de Pizan, and Immanuel Kant will also be examined with at the conclusion of the class. We will emphasize primary sources for all of these figures, although I will expose you to selected secondary sources when it seems beneficial.

This course is a theoretical-historical review of writings about rhetoric in the Western tradition up through the Enlightenment. It is based upon the assumption that there is no single, stable entity in that tradition called " rhetoric. " Instead, different writers organize that term in relationship to terms referencing other discourses and practices. Each way of situating rhetoric in a world of texts and action is also a way of understanding human experience in general. This course will cover various important figures in the history of rhetoric. We start our investigation with the thinkers from ancient Greece-Plato, Protagoras, Gorgias, Isocrates, and Aristotle. We will examine what they believe rhetoric is, what its value is, and what role it should play in ethics and politics. Important thinkers from the Roman world will also be examined. We'll talk about how Cicero, Quintilian, Christine de Pizan, Immanuel Kant, the American pragmatists and various stoics conceptualized and practiced rhetoric. Attention will be given to the promises and challenges of diversifying the rhetorical canon with female and international voices. We will emphasize primary sources for most of these figures, although I will expose you to selected secondary sources when it seems beneficial. My goals in the class are twofold: (1) I want you to gain a mastery and appreciation for the thought of ancient and classical thinkers " on their own terms. " (2) I want you to become proficient at making and evaluating arguments, both in writing and in speech.

2017

The study of how people use language and symbols to realize human goals and carry out human activities… ultimately a practical study offering people great control over their symbolic activity." Charles Bazerman (Shaping Written Knowledge. 1988. 6) "The aim of ancient rhetorics was to distribute the power that resides in language among all of their students. This power is available to anyone who is willing to study the principles of rhetoric." S. Crowly and D. Hawhee, Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students "In short, rhetoric is a mode of altering reality, not by the direct application of energy to objects, but by the creation of discourse which changes reality through mediation of thought and action." Lloyd Bitzer ("The Rhetorical Situation" 1968

2002

I wish to thank many people for their support and assistance in the writing of this thesis. I would like to thank my supervisor, Kate Lilley, for her advice, encouragement, and detailed and constructive comments on my work. I am indebted to her for providing the intellectual environment in which I was able to develop an eclectic and interdisciplinary thesis. I thank Melissa Hardie, who was a helpful acting supervisor, and valuable discussant throughout, and Dr Margaret Rogerson and Dr Adrian Mitchell for their assistance. Meaghan Morris has given me tremendous support and sage advice over this period and I thank her also. I wish to thank my parents, John Docker and Ann Curthoys, for their tremendous intellectual and emotional support over a long period. I could not have done this thesis without them. I feel special gratitude to Sarah Irving for all her love and inspiration over the critical latter stages of this project. Jane Bennett and Bill Connolly provided stimulating and timely suggestions, and were generous hosts during my research on Hannah Arendt in the United States. I thank Desley Deacon for her friendship and her abiding interest in my ideas. Many people have played a role in bringing this thesis about, through their friendship, conversation, and feedback. I would like to thank Alex Wolfson for our long friendship, his good humour and support. I thank my good friend Zora Simic for reading and providing insightful commentary on sections of the thesis and Monique Rooney for her continuing assistance. Many thanks to Dirk Moses, who has consistently provided me with research materials and enthusiastic intellectual conversation, and to Marina Bollinger, who has been an enthusiastic participant in discussions about rhetoric, and has greatly contributed to my historical approach.