Steven Wexler
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English 651-01: Rhetorical Theory and Composition
Fall 2009
Jerome Richfield Hall 319
M 7:00-9:45 PM
Office Hours: M W 9:30 - 11:00

Texts
Bizzell. The Rhetorical Tradition
Miller. The Norton Book of Composition Studies

This graduate seminar on the history of rhetoric, rhetorical theory, and composition begins with Nietzsche’s devastating observation, “Is dialectics only a form of revenge in Socrates?” The answer to that question has shaped the contemporary reception of classical and modern rhetoric as well as composition studies and teaching in general. Today’s educators strive for a democratic classroom by recognizing how meaning making is always already value-laden.

To that end, this course surveys the most influential texts in the field along with equally powerful non-canonical works. Readings explore how the rhetorical tradition informs present-day writing instruction and conceptions of language and human relations. Class discussions bridge literacy, rhetoric, politics, and the institutionalization of writing instruction so that by the semester’s end we’ll answer Nietzsche’s question with another: How are “rights,” “accountability,” and “responsible citizens” part of the problem?

Requirements:
Your main projects include a blog devoted to Rhetorical Theory and Composition, leading a discussion on two of our weekly readings and an academic journal article of your own choosing, and writing and presenting a final conference paper, which could be reworked in the future as a journal article.  I grade holistically, after the semester ends and after I’ve read your work.  I am most interested in your overall contribution and commitment to the seminar. 

  • WebCT Journal Forum.  Post an informal yet thoughtful response to our weekly readings and class discussions on our WebCT page, 250 words minimum per week.  This is a great opportunity for you to establish a meaningful dialogue with your classmates since they will post there too. I'll look for clear, convincing reflections in a conversational tone.  Go beyond summarizing. Begin here: https://webteach.csun.edu

  • Analyses.  You will be reading a great deal this semester and often asked to respond more formally than your WebCT posts yet less so than a full term paper.  Though these analyses will vary in style and content they could very well figure into your seminar discussion and final paper.

  • Seminar Discussion.  Early in the semester, pair up with a classmate and choose a week's readings for a seminar discussion. Begin thinking about how your pair will lead a discussion on these texts.  Select an additional essay from the Miller book that helps bridge the week's readings and inform the class one week before your discussion date which essay you've selected. Visit my office before the discussion date so we can discuss your thoughts on the texts, supplemental Miller reading, and strategies for a good talk.  Rather than lecture, you and your partner will find interesting and creative ways to help your classmates to situate the text historically, politically, pedagogically, and so on.  The goal is for everyone to rehearse important approaches to the text as well as shed new light on its subject matter, relevance, and implications for the field.

  • Seminar Paper.  This ten-page paper is a critical extension of an idea that we’ve examined during the semester. You will develop and defend your own thesis, based on what we’ve read and discussed, that focuses on key areas in which rhetoric plays an important role, such as education, science, politics, economics, art, literature, and film.  You’ll present a section of the paper to the seminar and field questions from your classmates, just as you would at an academic conference.  These papers could serve as drafts of journal articles.

  • Blog.Your blog is a compendium of your semester's work and a legitimate research website that will draw readers from around the world. During the first week of class, create a blog devoted to Rhetorical Theory and Composition. NOTE: Since this is your personal blog, it will be tempting to write informally, as if you’re chatting to a friend. All of your major writings, however, must meet high academic standards including a formal tone. But feel free to be creative; experiment with new media! Begin here: https://www.blogger.com/start.

Attendance, Participation, and Academic Honesty:
This is a graduate seminar and attendance is absolutely necessary.  Please do not come late to class, since repeated late arrivals will count as a full absence.  You cannot pass this course if you miss more than two classes, miss an assignment, or plagiarize.  Please feel free to come by my office to discuss your progress, our assignments, and any other concerns.

Fall 2009 Syllabus

Please note that work is due on the date listed below and assignments are subject to change.  Not all readings and written assignments are represented.



8/24
Introductions..
What is Rhetoric? 
Next week: Read Bizzell's "General Introduction" and choose a section and subsection (e.g., Medieval Rhetoric: The Later Middle Ages) that you find particularly interesting.  Post a one-page response on WebCT @250 words.  Discuss why that section/subsection is important to you.  Make connections to contemporary issues.  Read your classmates’ posts.

8/31
Syllabus review
Choose partners and readings for seminar discussion
Bizzell. General Introduction
Miller. Berlin, "Rhetoric and Ideology in the Writing Class"
WebCT Response

9/7 Labor Day

9/14
Antiquity
Bizzell.  Classical Rhetoric: Introduction; Gorgias, Encomium of Helen; Isocrates, Against the Sophists; Plato, Gorgias
Miller. Clifford, "The Subject in Discourse"
WebCT Response: Enter the dialectic. Whom do you side with, Plato or Gorgias?  Why?


Miller. Rhodes, from Radical Feminism, Writing, and Critical Agency
WebCT Response

10/5
Antiquity cont’d
Bizzell.  Aristotle, From Rhetoric
WebCT Response
Miller. Lundsford and Ede, "Representing Audience"
WebCT Response

10/12
Antiquity cont’d
Bizzell.  Cicero, From De Oratore; Longinus, From On the Sublime; Quintilian, From Institutes of Oratory
Miller. Royster, "When the First Voice Your Hear is Not Your Own"
WebCT Response
 
10/19
Medieval Rhetoric
Bizzell.  Medieval Rhetoric: Introduction; Augustine, On Christian Doctrine; Boethius, An Overview of the Structure of Rhetoric
Miller. Spellmeyer, "After Theory: From Textuality to Attunement with the World"
WebCT Response

10/26
Renaissance Rhetoric
Bizzell.  Renaissance Rhetoric: Introduction; Ramus, Arguments in Rhetoric Against Quintilian; Bacon, The Advancement of Learning
Miller. Hartwell, "Grammar, Grammars, and the Teaching of Grammar"
WebCT Response

1. A two-page typed proposal (this could serve as your blog's introduction) introducing your topic and suggesting why your project is important, relevant.
2. A five-text annotated bibliography (you will add more texts to the project as the semester progresses, but these five will help you focus in on the conversation surrounding your topic).

11/2
Enlightenment Rhetoric
Bizzell.  Enlightenment Rhetoric: Introduction; Locke, From An Essay Concerning Human Understanding; Hume, Of the Standard of Taste; Vico, On the Study Methods of Our Time
Miller. Lyons. "Rhetorical Sovereignty: What Do American Indians Want from Writing?"
WebCT Response

11/9
Enlightenment Rhetoric cont’d
Bizzell. Sheridan, A Course of Lectures on Elocution; Campbell, The Philosophy of Rhetoric; Blair, Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres
Miller. Elbow, "Some Thoughts on Expressive Discourse"
WebCt Response

11/16
19th-Century Rhetoric
Bizzell.  Introduction; Whately, Elements of Rhetoric; Grimke, Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, Willard, Women and Temperance
Miller. Connors, from Composition-Rhetoric: Backgrounds, Theory, and Practice
WebCT Response

11/23
19th-Century Rhetoric cont’d
Bizzell.  Bain, From English Composition and Rhetoric; Hill, From The Principles of Rhetoric; Nietzsche, On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense
Miller. Rose, "The Language of Exclusion: Writing Instruction at the University"
WebCT Response

11/30
Modern and Postmodern Rhetoric
Bizzell.  Introduction; Bakhtin, Marxism and the Philosophy of Language, The Problem of Speech Genres; Burke, A Rhetoric of Motives; Toulmin, The Uses of Argument; Foucault, From The Order of Discourse
Miller. Brandt and Clinton, "Limits of the Local"
WebCT Response

12/7
Paper and Blog Presentations

12/16
Blogs Due