Describes a method of rhetorical criticism to be used in situations where the values of critic and audience differ in significant ways. Uses the method to analyze the responses of children to "The Empire Strikes Back." (PD)

Claims that the narrative paradigm recently proposed as a model for rhetorical criticism is problematic because of internal contradictions and inconsistencies. Argues that independent sources are lacking for judging the adequacy of a critic's claims about a text. (JD)

Fleshes out a model of hysterical discourse, and applies it to an analysis of the charges and countercharges of "environmentalist hysteria." Gives special attention to the book that drew the earliest accusations of hysteria, Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring." (SR)

Analyzes "The Deer Hunter" in terms of a psychological/ritual model of criticism. Argues that the rhetorical force of the film is explained by men's participation in rituals, such as deer hunting, which affect the patterns of psychological change they experience during and after war. (JMF)

Joshua Gunn calls for the creation of a new post-humanist, -Marxist, -Freudian approach to rhetorical criticism that would combine literary, critical, and psychoanalytic methods in a new "popular imaginary" paradigm. While urging acceptance of his new paradigm, Gunn advances three major criticisms of symbolic convergence theory (SCT): (1) SCT is…