COURSE SYLLABUS
CMM 402/502 RHETORICAL THEORY
6:30 P.M. TUESDAY
Course Description: [Not the catalog description] An extensive introduction into the development of rhetorical theory from its beginnings to the present day, with an emphasis upon the relationship of rhetoric to the societies and cultures that have made use of it.
Instructor: Dr. William N. Denman
Smith Hall Office: 251
Telephone: 696-2476
Email: denman@marshall.edu
Office Hours: Monday, Wednesday, Friday 11:00-12:50, 2:00-3:15 pm..
Tuesday 11:00-12:15, 3:30-4:30 pm.
Thursday 12:00-1:45, 3:30-4:30.
Textbooks: All students must have:
Golden, Berquist and Coleman, The Rhetoric of Western Thought, 7th ed.,
Kendall-Hunt
Foss, Foss, and Trapp, Contemporary Perspectives on Rhetoric, 3rd ed.,
Waveland Press
Graduate students must also have:
Conley, Rhetoric in the European Tradition, University of Chicago Press.
Course Theme: This course takes as the definition of rhetoric: “A speaker’s self-conscious manipulation of his medium with a view to ensuring his message as favorable a reception as possible on the part of the particular audience being addressed.” Rhetoric, thus defined, has a long and honorable history as a central element in the development of societies since the time of the ancient Greeks. The linkage between rhetoric and the growth and maintenance of democratic societies is equally old and of considerable importance in today’s world. We shall explore how rhetoric as an art and a practice developed in the ancient world, how writers and thinkers conceived of rhetoric, how it came to be taught as a primary core of ancient education. We will then look at how it survived both as a practice, a body of theory, and as part of systems of education until our day. The purpose of the course is, then, to demonstrate that rhetoric, often maligned and misunderstood, has been and should continue to be a central part of the liberal arts education of any educated citizen.
Course Goal: To provide students with an introduction to rhetoric as a practical art and as a field of study, and demonstrate how rhetoric has been an integral part of the development and maintenance of democratic societies from ancient times to today.
CMM 402/502 SYLLABUS FALL 2003 2
Course Objectives: By the end of the course students should:
1. Be able to demonstrate a solid understanding of the historical development of rhetoric as one body of theory in the field of communication.
Assignment(s): short two-three page papers describing particular developments or theories in rhetoric. (topics for all papers will be assigned one week before papers are due and based on the readings and lecture for that week.) Questions on the mid-term or final examinations. A term paper.
Evaluation: Papers will be graded on a point scale; thoroughness of discussion,
accuracy of information, and quality of writing that is free from errors will earn
most points. Accuracy of answer for the examinations. Thoroughness of discussion, quality of writing, and accuracy of content for term paper.
2. Be able to identify central figures in the development of rhetoric and describe their contributions to it.
Assignment(s): short two-three page papers discussing a particular figure and his or her contribution to the field. Questions on the mid-term or final examinations.
Evaluation: As above for the short papers. Accuracy of answer for the examinations.
3. Be able to analyze examples of discourse using concepts of rhetoric from different periods of history.
Assignments: short two-three page papers applying a concept and analyzing a
particular discourse.
Evaluation: As above for short papers.
4. Be able to speculate on the role of rhetoric as an important element of democratic societies.
Assignments: questions on the mid-term or final examinations. Possibly the term
paper.
Evaluation: Accuracy of answer for the examinations. As above for term paper.
Course Assessment Procedures:
A mid-term examination consisting of a variety of questions (multiple-choice, short-answer, essay) written in class, worth 100 points.
A final examination consisting of a variety of questions as above, written during final exam session, worth 100 points.
Several short papers, of 1-2 pages in length pages, worth 20 points each.
A term paper, of approximately 10-12 pages, worth 100 points
Total points for the semester (assuming five short papers): 400
Grading scale: 360-400=A; 320-359=B; 280-319=C; 240-279=D; less than 240
an F.
Evaluation of papers will be based upon the extent to which the answers reflect careful reading of the materials in the textbooks, and a use of information from lectures that supplements the texts. The course lectures and discussions are designed to clarify and expand upon the readings, and are an important source of information for both papers and examinations.
CMM 402/502 SYLLABUS FALL 2003 3
The term paper will be assigned after the mid-semester, and will be on a topic of the student’s choice with the approval of the instructor. It will be graded on the following:
--the extent to which it deals successfully with the issue, question, or topic that has been chosen;
--the degree to which it demonstrates a grasp and understanding of the topic;
--the extent to which it demonstrates careful use of a variety of sources other than the textbooks;
--and the extent to which it is free of errors of fact, grammar and usage.
Graduate students in 502 are expected to produce work that demonstrates a higher level of analytical skills, shows more mature use of sources, and is more substantial in all other respects.
Course Structure:
This course will be largely lecture/discussion in format. The lectures are designed to provide information not in the texts, to assist in understanding material from the texts, and to give a broader perspective on the course material. During many class sessions the focus will be on class discussion of questions based upon the readings for that session. These questions will be provided in advance, where possible, and will be discussed in small groups that will report back to the rest of the class on the results of their discussion.
COURSE SCHEDULE
The instructor reserves the right to alter the schedule as the course develops; some topics may require more discussion or time, others may prove to be less important.
26 Introduction to the course, review of syllabus and schedule
ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Introduction and chapters one and two of The Rhetoric of Western Thought (hereafter RWT). FOR 502: chapter one of Rhetoric in the European Tradition (hereafter Conley).
2 Introduction to rhetoric as central to study of communication. Myths and realities of rhetoric. The roots of rhetoric in the world of the ancient Greeks. The nature of Greek society and the move to democratic forms of government and the consequent development of rhetorical theory and practice.The importance of rhetoric in Greek society; the teachings of the sophists. Plato’s moral view of rhetoric; how rhetoric can be use for good or for ill. Some contemporary situations that support the amorality of rhetoric.
ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter three in RWT on Aristotle.
SEPTEMBER (CONTINUED)
9 The “scientific” view of Aristotle. The concepts of invention, proofs, and the enthymeme. The importance of Aristotle to the history of rhetoric. The three types of oratory: forensic, deliberative, and epideictic.
ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter four in RWT on the citizen-orator. ASSIGNMENT FOR 502: Chapter two Conley.
16 Isocrates and the concept of the “citizen-orator”; Isocrates’ role in the education v of the youth of Athens. His influence on Cicero and Quintilian. Rhetoric in Rome; Cicero, rhetoric and democracy in the last years of the Roman Republic.
Quintilian and the “good many speaking well.” The Roman adaptation of the Greek system of rhetorical education. ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter five in RWT. ASSIGNMENT FOR 502: Chapters three and four in Conley.
23 The Christianization of rhetoric; Saint Augustine; rhetoric in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance; the continuing influence of Cicero and Quintilian. ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter seven in RWT. ASSIGNMENT FOR 502: Chapter six in Conley.
30 The epistemologists: Bacon, Descarte, Locke and Vico. New views that shaped the nature of rhetoric for the age that followed. ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapters six and eight in RWT. ASSIGNMENT FOR 502: Chapter seven in Conley.
7 Society and culture in eighteenth century Europe and England in particular. The nature of the Enlightenment. Neoclassisicm in English life and in the written arts.
The work of Hugh Blair; belles lettres. The work of the other Scots: Campbell, and Whately. Possibly some reference to the Elocutionists. ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Handout: Introduction to Oratorical Culture in Nineteenth-Century America by Clark and Halloran; Chapter ten in RWT. ASSIGNMENT FOR 502: Chapter eight in Conley.
14 Rhetoric in colonial and early Republican America. The status of neoclassical education and its demise; the rise of the professional classes and new approaches to the teaching of communication. The development of departments of English and the teaching of composition. The beginnings of departments of speech and the growth of the discipline in the early Twentieth Century. Why pubic speaking cam to be only a part of the broader study of communication in higher education.
ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter eleven in RWT; Chapters one and two in Foss, Foss, and Trapp (hereafter FFT). ASSIGNMENT FOR 502: Chapter nine in Conley.
CMM 402/502 SYLLABUS FALL 2003 5
OCTOBER (CONTINUED)
21 Why language (or meaning) became important to the study of rhetoric: the work of I.A. Richards and Marshall McLuhan. The impact of mass media and its role in changing rhetoric (or discourse). ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter twelve in
RWT and chapter six in FFT.
28 Rhetoric, ethics, and values: the work of Richard Weaver. Is it important to teach ethics with communication? Is there any set of standards we can accept? Or was Plato right all along? ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter thirteen in RWT and chapter seven in FFT. [I warned you there would be a lot of reading.]
4 Kenneth Burke, “dramatism”, and his influence on the contemporary study of
rhetoric. One whole class session is not enough time to do Burke justice, but we will try. ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapters fourteen and fifteen in RWT; chapters four and five in FFT. ASSIGNMENT FOR 502: Chapter ten in Conley.
11 The return of argument and the work of Toulmin and Perelman. ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter sixteen in RWT; chapters three, eight and eleven in FFT.
18 The contemporary Europeans and their influence: Habermas, Grassi, Foucault.
ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter eighteen in RWT; chapter nine in FFT.
25 The new challenges to western rhetoric. ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL: Chapter nineteen in RWT.
2 Rhetoric in the 21st Century. Where do we go from here? What is the role of
rhetoric in our mediated age?
9 FINAL EXAM SESSION 6:30-9:00 P.M.