Rhetoric of Style

Definitions

• Rhetoric– Counterpart to dialectic (enthymemes)– Art of persuasion– Good man speaking well– Symbol manipulation– Flattery, bombast, “empty” words– Study of discourse (community)

Definitions

• Style (from stylus)– Expression/manifestation of rhetoric (or ideology)– Type/manner of a performance– Word choices, sentence patterns, etc. – Style vs. substance

Rhetorical

Burke’s Pentad

• Act – What?• Scene – Where?• Agent – Who?• Agency – How?• Purpose –Why?

Identification

• “You persuade a man only insofar as you can talk his language by speech, gesture, tonality, order, image, attitude, idea, identifying your way with his.”

The Rugged Individual

• Gunsmoke "The Killer" Act 3

Group Questions

• What is the style expressed in the clip?– Does it offer an attractive model of masculinity?

What are its features?– How is this presentation affected/determined by

the cultural/social climate of the 1960s? – What can we say about race or ethnic relations as

seen in this piece?

African American Male Oratory

• Sermon Structure" Pt. 2- Dr. Mack K. Carter

Group Questions

• What is the style expressed in these clips?– What kind of style or image is Dr. Carter

constructing for himself? – How does he construct and/or appeal to his

audience?

Politics and Preaching

• Tell the Whole Story FOX! Barack Obama's pastor Wright

• Jeremiah Wright on Fox

Race, Rhetoric, and Style

• How does Rev. Wright’s presentation compare or contrast with Dr. Carter’s?

• What’s at stake in how his church or statements get constructed in the Fox broadcast?

• What strategies are employed by the show to represent (or misrepresent) Wright’s beliefs?

Obama’s Oratory

• Dr. Dyson on Obama’s Rhetoric

• Obama’s Words Do Matter

Group Questions

• How would you describe Obama’s style?• What is “black cool”?• How does this style compare to the “rugged

individualist” portrayed in the Marlboro ads and Gunsmoke clip?