Homework for 12/9

1. Please download and read Lloyd Bitzer's "The Rhetorical Situation" (on our google groups page, under "Files"). This is a somewhat difficult article. I am purposely sharing my copy with you--it is already highlighted. I thought that by sharing my copy, it might A) help you understand it better, and B) allow you to have the opportunity of reading something someone has already tried to make sense of.

2. Please write Blog #20 (our final of the semester!). In "The Rhetorical Situation," Lloyd Bitzer attempts to define the phrase/term "rhetorical situation. First, here are a few definitions that are important to understanding the article:

Discourse: written or spoken communication
Rhetoric: the art of effective speaking or writing.
Exigence: an occasion that requires something (e.g., The exigence for the party was her birthday.)
Situation: a set of circumstances in which one finds oneself.

Bitzer explains that a rhetorical situation "calls discourse into existence" (2). Furthermore, he writes, "We need to understand that a particular discourse comes into existence because of some specific condition or situation which invites utterance" (4). The point here is that discourse, whether spoken or written, is always social--we don't write or speak in a vacuum. When we write or speak, we are embedded within a social situation (although we may not always realize it) which precedes and calls forth the existence of our speech/writing. Furthermore, our speech/writing does something, it is a form of action, within the situation.

Bitzer explains that there are three parts to any rhetorical situation:

Exigence (the cause of the speech/writing)
Audience (the person/group to whom the speech/writing is directed/aimed)
Constraints (those factors/things which shape what can be said/written)

Bitzer provides several examples of rhetorical situations. One example is the assassination of President Kennedy. One genre of writing that responded to this situation was the news article. Thus, we can think of it this way:

news article:

exigence (the death of the president)
audience (readers of the newspaper, american citizens)
constraints (what is known about the death, the space/length allowed by the editor, the conventions of what is appropriate in journalistic language--e.g., no swear words)

The news article is just one genre that responded to the situation of the President's death (there were others such as the feature article, the eulogy, the investigative report, etc.)

Bitzer writes, "In our real world, rhetorical [situations] abound…" (13) For Blog #20, I'd like you to apply your understanding of Bitzer's article by describing two rhetorical situations in which you have found yourself. If we think of discourse as something that can be both oral and written, I'd like you to give an example of a rhetorical situation for each.

So, organize your blog entry like this:

Rhetorical Situation (Oral)

1. Describe the rhetorical situation.
2. Describe the exigence, the audience, and the constraints.

Rhetorical Situation (Written)

1. Describe the rhetorical situation.
2. Describe the exigence, the audience, and the constraints.

You might use the example of President Kennedy's assassination to help you organize your examples.

Good luck! If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch.

mm