It seems to me that teaching the students the rhetorical basics that lie behind all argument in the western tradition (even the arguments of courses designed to liberate us from traditional academic discourse and its various evils) is far more empowering than the alternatives we've encountered.
The power of this rhetorical approach is derived from the fact that, rather than merely critiquing the "dominant discourse" or learning to recognize its flaws, one learns to recognize its strengths and how to use them. The ability to take on entrenched powers on their own ground, to take the fight to them in their own words and language isn't a weakness, it's the very definition of power through language.
Furthermore, a focus on the tools of argument allows the composition course to be more broadly useful to students prepping for any of the various fields of the university. Through generalization? Absolutely! But we (the various disciplines of academia personified as a group) are strongest when we stand together, and it is much harder to stand together if we lack a common tongue.
I have stated in earlier posts that I view the very purpose of education as a providing of tools to others for the purpose of shaping themselves into the people they want to become. I firmly believe that the critical thinking and communication skills provided by a course of study in this method are some of these essential tools. The years have not dimmed the challenge to know thyself, and the critical thought reflected in the rhetorical tradition born out of the ancients is as good a tool for self-knowledge as we've yet found.
Thus I feel Kinneavy's rhetorical approach empowers students by accomplishing the primary educational purpose of providing students with the tools necessary to pursue and apply learning on their own.
"rather than merely critiquing the 'dominant discourse' or learning to recognize its flaws, one learns to recognize its strengths and how to use them." Agreed. And just because it is prescriptive, doesn't mean that it has to be adhered to in its exact form. It is just a guide to show what can be done and where each argument has the potential to fall. I also agree that, in separating the different kinds of discourses it allows us, as teachers, to address a broader amount of possibilities for the futures of our students.
ReplyDeletePlus, if we can give students language, labels and "tools" to help them understand certain arguments while, at the same time, teaching them to think for themselves, then they will understand that there is no finite answer when it comes to language. This, to me, is--as you might agree--the purpose of education.
Thanks, Scott! I posted more information on Kinneavy that I wasn't able to get to in my presentation, but which helps clarify my overall ambivalence regarding Kinneavy's work.
ReplyDeleteI think you make an interesting connection in referencing the need to empower students that are otherwise unprepared for university life or for any form of civic participation. I know you were referencing the students of the 50’s and early 60’s, but I would contend that the students of today are experiencing a similar lack of empowerment. Instead of a lack of education or an agricultural background, the students today are disempowered because of a continuous IV drip of rhetoric that assaults them every waking moment of their day. We do spend a considerable amount of time pointing out to our students that they are being manipulated, but rarely are we doing anything to allow our students to use this knowledge to their own positive ends. A similar conversation began in my Wednesday night class, and one of the students referenced a film (film might be too kind a term) from the 80’: Summer School. While the picture itself is debatable in quality, the student’s point was accurate; what she saw as important was the film’s focus on taking this visual and persuasive rhetoric all around us and using it. The best example was their experiment with the sunglasses essay. The students used the sunglass corporation’s own policies against them to get free sunglasses; if only we could think of like assignments, out students would enter the world more prepared and empowered.
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