Reading Rhetorical Theory: Speech, Representation, Power

August 01, 2022

Reading Rhetorical Theory is a multi-authored online textbook project that provides an accessible, multimodal, and entry-level survey of rhetorical theory centered on (1) practical techniques and political problems associated with speaking, (2) social, cultural, and linguistic modes of representation, and (3) interwoven hierarchies of rhetoric and power. The project covers rhetoric’s problematic “origins” in ancient Greece, rhetoric as a feature of 20th-century sign- and symbol-systems, rhetoric’s role in crafting shared ideologies and belief systems, narrative-, argument-, and visual-based approaches to rhetoric, and a variety of different “situations” (rhetorical, settler colonial, secrecy/surveillance, and digital) where rhetoric continues to be found and felt in contemporary U.S. culture. This book also includes audio or video recordings for each chapter, and recommended written assignments. Developed in the wake of the 2020 global pandemic, this resource is designed for a range of modalities (online synchronous, online asynchronous, in-person, and hybrid). Additional materials (PowerPoint slides, quiz/exam questions) are also available to confirmed instructors upon request.

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