William G. Allen was an African-American professor at Central College, McGrawville, New York. His lecture, "Orators and Oratory," delivered on June 22, 1852, is the earliest recorded study by an American Black on the ancient art of oratory. The text of the lecture is provided. (BJV)

Based upon research conducted during the past decade that identifies speech features of form, topic, content, and use of language as male- or female-associated, this paper examines the rhetoric of Sojourner Truth in reference to these features. It classifies her directness, originality, and action as male-associated and her modesty, emotionalism,…

In their new roles as congressmen after the Civil War, blacks, for the first time in American history, advanced views of civil rights that reflected black perspectives. One scheme for analyzing black rhetoric suggests that black congressmen did not share the perspective held by many whites--that blacks were inept individuals. Rather, the black…