So, reading over your proposal, I have a few concerns, but let me first focus on what’s good here.
I think you’re spot on when you say that civilization and rhetoric influence each other. That’s why ERH 201 is a C&C class: we can’t teach or learn rhetoric in a decontextualized way. Rhetoric as a practice and a body of knowledge always depends on its historical context; however, rhetoric also shapes that context. It gives victors a voice. It promotes one memory while silencing and erasing others.
That said, the proposal is way too broad–so broad that as a reader, it’s impossible for me to determine what your unique argument is, to whom you’re speaking, and why you see your argument as a response to an exigence. You need to narrow this down and find your voice here. Because you mention him so much, it sounds like you’re influenced by Isocrates. However, I’m left wondering this: You say rhetoric is powerful, but what kind of power does it wield and why?
November 22, 2015 at 9:05 pm
So, reading over your proposal, I have a few concerns, but let me first focus on what’s good here.
I think you’re spot on when you say that civilization and rhetoric influence each other. That’s why ERH 201 is a C&C class: we can’t teach or learn rhetoric in a decontextualized way. Rhetoric as a practice and a body of knowledge always depends on its historical context; however, rhetoric also shapes that context. It gives victors a voice. It promotes one memory while silencing and erasing others.
That said, the proposal is way too broad–so broad that as a reader, it’s impossible for me to determine what your unique argument is, to whom you’re speaking, and why you see your argument as a response to an exigence. You need to narrow this down and find your voice here. Because you mention him so much, it sounds like you’re influenced by Isocrates. However, I’m left wondering this: You say rhetoric is powerful, but what kind of power does it wield and why?