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Full-Text Articles in Rhetoric

Intersectional Rhetorics: A Case Study In The 2013 Supreme Court Decisions On Doma, Proposition 8, And The Voting Rights Act., Michelle Kearl Dec 2013

Intersectional Rhetorics: A Case Study In The 2013 Supreme Court Decisions On Doma, Proposition 8, And The Voting Rights Act., Michelle Kearl

Michelle Kelsey Kearl

The summer of 2013 saw a troubling social justice whiplash. On June 26th, in two separate decisions the Supreme Court repealed the Defense of Marriage Act and found no standing in the Perry case, also known as the Proposition 8 case, effectively opening the way for gay marriages to resume in California. Just one day before these decisions, a clear victory for mainstream gay rights movements, the same court ruled that the federal government must create a new standard for evaluating how states meet or violate the Voting Rights Act of 1965. While the court did not gut the Act …


Show Me Your Desire: Critical Discourses Of Legislating Voter Identification, Right To Work, And Sb 1070., Michelle Kearl Dec 2013

Show Me Your Desire: Critical Discourses Of Legislating Voter Identification, Right To Work, And Sb 1070., Michelle Kearl

Michelle Kelsey Kearl

While popular and political discourses seeking to shore up the mobility of bodies ‘to be’ in public is nothing new, the recent convergence of a host of legislating is worth noting. The rhetoric surrounding voter identification and right to work laws, as well as Arizona’s Senate Bill 1070 underscore xenophobic compulsions to reconstitute the appropriate public body. In this manuscript I am specifically interested in the intersection of race and class as they emerge in the political discourses of these cultural and legislative debates. In these three cases several tropes emerge including traditional arguments to preserve the American Dream for …


Towards A Critical Intersectional Rhetoric: Critical Rhetoric Meets Intersectionality, Michelle Kearl Dec 2013

Towards A Critical Intersectional Rhetoric: Critical Rhetoric Meets Intersectionality, Michelle Kearl

Michelle Kelsey Kearl

The most recent treatments of critical rhetoric have attempted to expand its appropriate methodological focus (Hess, 2011; Hess & Herbig, 2011; Middleton, Senda-Cook, & Endres, 2011). It is within this expansion that I pitch this theoretical interrogation and building of critical rhetoric. While the newest research argues for a variety of in situ, ethnographic, and other considerations of ‘live’ rhetorics, my investments are more directly in the responsibility of critical interpretation of texts. McKerrow (1989) establishes a series of obligations for critical rhetoricians as they analyze rhetorical artifacts; two critiques, eight praxes, and a perpetual criticism is no small endeavor. …


The Mirage Of A Space Between Nature And Nurture By Evelyn Fox Keller (Review), David Depew Feb 2012

The Mirage Of A Space Between Nature And Nurture By Evelyn Fox Keller (Review), David Depew

David J Depew

No abstract provided.


Semantics (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2011

Semantics (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

A primary reason for using language is, of course, to convey meaning from one interlocutor to another. But how does language convey meaning? How does language structure contribute to meaning? How does context shape meaning? How do linguists talk about and analyze meaning? In this course, we will examine basic concepts, theories, and analytical techniques used by contemporary linguists in the study of meaning in natural language. Students will gain practice with different types of semantic analyses through assignments and problem sets. The goals of the course are (1) to provide a grounding in semantics as a sub-field of linguistics, …


Narrative Analysis (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2011

Narrative Analysis (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

Narrative is central to human interaction. As we interact with one another, we share stories and make sense of the world through narrative. Given the importance of narrative in human lives, it is no surprise that it has been studied across a wide range of disciplines, from literary studies to psychology, folklore, anthropology, sociology and linguistics. In this course, we will examine narrative from a sociocultural linguistic perspective which takes into account the interdisciplinary nature of narrative studies. We will place particular emphasis on the way narrative constructs the social world in which we live and creates the identities that …


Language In The Usa (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2011

Language In The Usa (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

Americans grapple with a number of issues related to language in the areas of education, civil rights, and government policy. In this course, we will explore some of the language issues that have arisen in American society with emphasis placed on the way language itself has become the object of focus in social and political debates. One such case is the decision by the Oakland School Board in 1996 to recognize Ebonics as the primary language of its African American students. This decision created intense nationwide controversy, and illustrates the way race and socioeconomic issues intersect with language attitudes. Another …


Introduction To Linguistics (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2011

Introduction To Linguistics (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

Linguistics is the study of the various dimensions of language structure and language use. In this course, we will provide a basic overview of the field of linguistics by focusing on the three dimensions of language structure—the sound system (phonetics, phonology), vocabulary (lexicon, morphology), and grammar (syntax)—and the way linguistic structure and context give rise to meaning (semantics, pragmatics). In addition, we will consider how social practices shape and are shaped by language use (sociolinguistics), how children acquire language (language acquisition), and how we learn second languages (language learning). Students will gain practice with different types of linguistic analyses through …


Language, Race And Ethnicity (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2011

Language, Race And Ethnicity (Prospective Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

What is race? What is ethnicity? How is racial identity assigned, assumed, constructed and performed? How does race explicitly as well as implicitly order social life? How does racism manifest itself in our discourse—not just overtly but covertly? What is a “color blind” society? What is a “post-racial” society? A focus on language is central to answering these and many related questions. In this course, we will explore the work done by sociocultural linguists within the American context on the way language intersects with issues pertaining to race and ethnicity. Primary emphasis will be placed on the way ethnoracial identities …


Sacrificial Sookie: A Feminist Analysis Of Hbo's True Blood, Stephanie Kelley-Romano Oct 2011

Sacrificial Sookie: A Feminist Analysis Of Hbo's True Blood, Stephanie Kelley-Romano

Stephanie Kelley-Romano

No abstract provided.


Personal Matters, Public Voicings, Stephanie Kelley-Romano Oct 2011

Personal Matters, Public Voicings, Stephanie Kelley-Romano

Stephanie Kelley-Romano

No abstract provided.


The Social Hierarchy Of The Joomla Content Management System (Cms): What The Open Source Community Can Teach Us About Knowledge Creation, Power, And Collaboration, Carly Finseth Mar 2011

The Social Hierarchy Of The Joomla Content Management System (Cms): What The Open Source Community Can Teach Us About Knowledge Creation, Power, And Collaboration, Carly Finseth

Carly Finseth

No abstract provided.


Language And Culture (Spring 2011 Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2010

Language And Culture (Spring 2011 Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

In this course, we will take an ethnographic approach to examine language as a form of action through which social, cultural and political relations are constituted. Topics will explore language as it intersects with thought, ideology, identity, race and racism, ethnicity, gender, power, and linguistic diversity. In addition to articles, we will read several full-length ethnographies that focus on language practices within particular communities. The goals of the course are to (1) provide an introduction to key ideas in the study of language and culture, including the concepts of ideology, dialogism, identity, and indexicality; (2) equip students with a critical …


Introduction To Discourse Analysis (Fall 2011 Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2010

Introduction To Discourse Analysis (Fall 2011 Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

Discourse analysis places a primary focus on how things are said; and this close attention to the details of ―language in use‖ can offer insight into a variety of questions posed by researchers across the humanities and social sciences. In this course, we will examine the way discourse is itself a form of social action that plays a fundamental role in organizing social, cultural, and political life. In addition to becoming familiar with a variety of approaches and topics in the study of discourse, a major aim of the course is for you to develop the tools and skills needed …


The Impact Of Technologies On Writing Practices And Community Collaboration, Carly Finseth, Huiling Ding Apr 2010

The Impact Of Technologies On Writing Practices And Community Collaboration, Carly Finseth, Huiling Ding

Carly Finseth

No abstract provided.


Communication And The Joomla Open Source Content Management System (Cms): How Social Networking Has Redefined Instructional Documentation, Carly Finseth Mar 2010

Communication And The Joomla Open Source Content Management System (Cms): How Social Networking Has Redefined Instructional Documentation, Carly Finseth

Carly Finseth

No abstract provided.


Language, Power And Politics (Fall 2010 Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2009

Language, Power And Politics (Fall 2010 Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

In this course, we will examine the integral role language plays in politics; and, more generally, how power operates in linguistic practices and political interaction. As we critically examine how language is used to articulate, maintain and subvert relations of power in society, emphasis will be placed on language in the media, the political rhetoric associated with war, and the construction of ‘truth’ in politics. We will also consider the role of ethnographic analysis in aiding our understandings of how social actors use and (re)interpret political language. The course will provide you with a foundation for understanding how language shapes …


Language In Society (Winter 2010 Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2009

Language In Society (Winter 2010 Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

In this course, we will examine how language and society affect each other. We will place a significant focus on language use in our own society to explore regional and social differences in speech. We will examine the attitudes and ideologies people have about languages, language varieties, and their speakers (e.g. issues of prestige and stigma). We will explore how speakers use language to construct identities and interact with different audiences. And we will examine how language itself often becomes a political issue (e.g. in debates over language and education). The course will use a mixture of lectures, class discussions, …


Paul Crook, Darwin’S Coat-Tails. Essays On Social Darwinism., David Depew Dec 2008

Paul Crook, Darwin’S Coat-Tails. Essays On Social Darwinism., David Depew

David J Depew

No abstract provided.


“Human Rights Anyone? Conceptions Of Intellectual Labor After Noam Chomsky.”, Matthew Abraham Dec 2008

“Human Rights Anyone? Conceptions Of Intellectual Labor After Noam Chomsky.”, Matthew Abraham

Matthew Abraham

No abstract provided.


David Sedley, Creationism And Its Critics In Antiquity, David Depew Dec 2007

David Sedley, Creationism And Its Critics In Antiquity, David Depew

David J Depew

No abstract provided.


Trust No One: The Conspiracy Genre On American Television, Stephanie Kelley-Romano Dec 2007

Trust No One: The Conspiracy Genre On American Television, Stephanie Kelley-Romano

Stephanie Kelley-Romano

No abstract provided.


First Year Writing And Rhetoric (Fall 2008 Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2007

First Year Writing And Rhetoric (Fall 2008 Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

WRTG 1150 is a rhetorically informed introduction to college writing. Over the course of the semester, you will engage in critical analysis, argument, and inquiry as you develop your writing skills and acquire critical information literacy for college and beyond.


Blaming Bush: A Functional Analysis Of Political Cartoons, Stephanie Kelley-Romano, V Westgate Dec 2006

Blaming Bush: A Functional Analysis Of Political Cartoons, Stephanie Kelley-Romano, V Westgate

Stephanie Kelley-Romano

No abstract provided.


Makin' Whoopi: Race, Gender, And The Starship Enterprise, Stephanie Kelley-Romano Dec 2006

Makin' Whoopi: Race, Gender, And The Starship Enterprise, Stephanie Kelley-Romano

Stephanie Kelley-Romano

No abstract provided.


Edward Said And After: Toward A New Humanism. Eds., Matthew Abraham And Andrew Rubin. “Introduction: Edward Said And After: Toward A New Humanism.”, Matthew Abraham Dec 2006

Edward Said And After: Toward A New Humanism. Eds., Matthew Abraham And Andrew Rubin. “Introduction: Edward Said And After: Toward A New Humanism.”, Matthew Abraham

Matthew Abraham

No abstract provided.


Language In Us Society (Spring 2007 Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2006

Language In Us Society (Spring 2007 Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

LING 1000 is a survey course that provides a non-technical exploration of the ways that language is used in America. It emphasizes language as a social institution and how values and goals of both public institutions and private groups shape, and are shaped by language and its use.


The Modern Mythmaking Of Alien Abductions, Stephanie Kelley-Romano Dec 2005

The Modern Mythmaking Of Alien Abductions, Stephanie Kelley-Romano

Stephanie Kelley-Romano

No abstract provided.


Drawing Disaster: The Crisis Cartoons Of Hurricane Katrina, Stephanie Kelley-Romano, V Westgate Dec 2005

Drawing Disaster: The Crisis Cartoons Of Hurricane Katrina, Stephanie Kelley-Romano, V Westgate

Stephanie Kelley-Romano

No abstract provided.


Language In Us Society (Spring 2006 Syllabus), Adam Hodges Dec 2005

Language In Us Society (Spring 2006 Syllabus), Adam Hodges

Adam Hodges

LING 1000 is a survey course that provides a non-technical exploration of the ways that language is used in America. It emphasizes language as a social institution and how values and goals of both public institutions and private groups shape, and are shaped by language and its use.