ANDERSON, Amy K.

Fall 2022, 52.5 pages: 448-463

Rhetorical Stillness: How Byzantine Iconography Offers an Alternative to Rhetorical Velocity

Abstract:

As a counterpoint to rhetorical velocity, this essay proposes rhetorical stillness, the property of texts that are designed to have limited circulation but high audience engagement. Drawing from an analysis of Byzantine iconography, the essay examines how a rhetorical ecology of beliefs and embodied practices can slow down a text’s circulation and create space for audiences to have transformative encounters.