Julian of Norwich (1342-1416), was a Christian mystic whose writings, "Revelation of Love" and "A Book of Showings," are the earliest surviving texts in the English language written by a woman. The question that has puzzled scholars for centuries follows: How could a woman of her time express her vision in such innovative and…

The position of authors of fiction in relation to critical discussion of their work is an unsettled one. While recognized as having knowledge and expertise regarding their texts, they are typically regarded as unreliable sources when it comes to critical analysis, and as partial witnesses whose personal association with the text is liable to…

This essay describes my design and implementation of a composition course focused on the Native American rhetorical device of survivance at work in debates on Indian removal and U.S.-Indian relations in general. Using a contact zone approach, I found that the course improved writing and thinking skills by pushing students out of their ideological…

An essay exploring the application of moral criticism to rhetorical discourse; based upon two lectures given at the State University of New York at Binghamton, November 1968. (Editor/RD)

Working from both literary and composition theory, this book argues that American composition theory and pedagogy of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries is founded on the Platonic view that invention is a solitary act in which the individual, drawing upon innate knowledge and mental structures, searches for the truth, using introspective self…

The implications of ghostwritten speeches for rhetorical studies. (CH)

Contrasts the rhetoric of Communist pamphlets in the periods before and after 1935. Examines the Third Period's advocacy of violent overthrow of the government and the Popular Front's appeal to cooperation and unity in opposition to fascism. Analyzes the lack of success of both movements in the United States. (JMF)

During the course of an interview, Terry Eagleton, one of England's foremost Marxist critics, talks about his political and critical position and about related contemporary developments. (HOD)

This paper attempts to extract and summarize the truth-, fact-, and reality-bases of Chaim Perelman's and Mme. L. Olbrechts-Tyteca's "The New Rhetoric." This paper considers: the four basic factors which the theorist needs to take into account when interpreting "The New Rhetoric"; the descriptive characteristics of the…

To show how Hugh Blair's treatise on rhetoric helped shape the patriarchal context in which women write and to suggest some considerations for modern teachers of writing, it will be useful to look at the ways 18th-century belletristic rhetoric responded to the disruption occasioned by women's entry into public discourse. Blair's work, the most…

Provides descriptions of two books written by Alexander Sutherland Neill: "A Dominie's Log" and "Dominie Dismissed." Considers the nature of the Dominie books as fact or fiction, looking at rhetoric and the controversy of the nature of Scottish schooling. Explores the influence Neill had on Scottish historians' writings. (CMK)

While rhetoric is conventionally associated with argumentation and discussions of discrete language forms (such as pronouns) which are usually housed in lingustics, clearly there are forms of rhetoric that are not obviously propositional. Moreover, sometimes very small language units can be deployed to great persuasive effect. Muriel Rukeyser's…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 16 titles deal with the following topics: (1) the response of the law to visual journalism from l839 to l978; (2) woman's image in authoritative Mormon discourse; (3) the depiction of computers and computer-related subjects in…