ENG 353 Rhetorical Histories and Traditions:

Rhetors, Pedagogues, and Power in the Context of Education

Dr. Jim Bowman, Spring 2010, St. John FisherCollege

Tuesdays and Thursdays 1:45-3:05 in Basil Hall 118

Instructor’s Office:
Basil 115, directly above Cyber Café / Email:
/ Office Phone:
(585) 899-3791
Office Hours:
Mondays 1-2 p.m. and Wednesdays 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
If these hours do not fit your schedule, please contact me to arrange another time to meet.

To study rhetoric becomes a way of studying humans. Rhetoric becomes for me the complete study of language, the study of the ways in which peoples have accomplished all that has been accomplished beyond the instinctual. There were the ancient greats saying that there was political import to the use of language. There were the modern greats saying that how one comes to know is at least mediated by language, maybe even constituted in language. There were the pragmatic applications. There was the possibility that in teaching writing and in teaching rhetoric as conscious considerations of language use I could help others like myself: players with language, victims of the language of failure (Villanueva 77)

Course Overview

This course studies texts from the ancient and modern traditions of rhetoric to understand how key concepts—like invention, organization, style, appeals, ethos, and purpose—have been defined by rhetoricians and deployed as educational practice. For the purposes of this course, education refers to any sustained discussion of teaching or learning that falls within the purview of our readings. As we will soon see, that is a lot of territory. The readings selected in the classical and modern eras may cover topics like the ethics of teaching (Plato and Isocrates), the relationship of love to education (Plato, hooks) ideal child-rearing and language-training practices (Quintilian), the training of preachers (Augustine), peasant literacy (Freire), curriculum design for a humanities course (Vico), the role of race in rhetoric and education (Villanueva, Jones-Royster) and how to effect social transformation (Gramsci), to name just a few.

For the first several weeks of the course, we will examine well-known rhetorical works from the ancient world to gather a sense of the deep roots in the relationship between rhetoric and education. In addition to regular short-writing assignments in response to readings, we will complete one critical analysis essay about a text of your choice from antiquity. In the following unit, our focus will shift to more contemporary rhetorical theories of education, covering a range of issues. Whether we are examining the training of dancers, warriors, peace activists, lawyers, poets, bloggers, or social networkers, an overarching concern will be the ethics of education: who gets taught what and why? What does this reveal about the material inequality in access to education on local, national, and global levels?

Course Assignments
Assignments / Brief Explanation / Value
Weekly Reader Response Blogs on Assigned Topics/Texts / In order to demonstrate your understanding of the assigned texts and topics, we will blog to respond to course readings and other prompts. These will function as required homework assignments and will be graded for their thoroughness, depth, and quality. Blog entries should be the equivalent of one single-spaced page of text, so approximately 300-500 words. We should have about 5 blog entries total, but this number may vary. / 15%
150 points total
Discussion Leader on Assigned Topics/Texts / This assignment serves multiple purposes. First, it gives you each practice in presenting in front of peers and facilitating a discussion—a valuable skill for those with majors or minors in a communications-based discipline. You will work with partners to present material and lead a discussion on a given topic and/or text, so you and a partner will have about 20-30 minutes of class time to prep for. / 5%
50 points
Critical Analysis of an Educational Topic (Ancient Rhetoric) / This essay explores an idea from one of the texts we will cover from the ancient traditions of rhetoric. By “critical analysis,” I mean for you to write an essay that explain how the idea has been constructed in the text and makes an argument about the value of this idea, the effectiveness of its presentation, or its continuing applicability to today’s students of rhetorical theory. The essay needs to be a minimum of 5 pages, double-spaced. / 10%
100 points
Critical Analysis of an Educational Topic (Contemporary Rhetoric) / See above, but you will be writing about a text and/or topic from the modern era, where the focus becomes communication, identification, and interaction rather than the classically-defined orator-audience relationship. The essay needs to be a minimum of 5 pages, double-spaced. / 15%
150 points
Term Project on Student-Selected Educational Topics / See description below of rhetorical engagement with an educational site. Using course readings and some research, you will write an essay applying ancient and modern ideas about the rhetoric and education to the context of an educational site of your choosing.Students will collaborate on research and writing. (8-10 pages, double-spaced) / 25%
250 points
Oral Report on Term Projects / Pairs will present their research to classmates in the closing weeks of the term. / 10%
100 points
Final Exam / A short answer and essay exam synthesizing ideas from the ancient and modern eras of rhetoric and from our application of these ideas to contemporary sites of learning. / 20%
200 points

Term Project: Rhetorical Engagement with Education

You will work collaboratively (groups of 2-3) on a term project that examines an educational program, movement, institution, or learning environment. You will research and analyze a social site where education and learning happens regularly—an adult literacy center, a jobs training program, athletic camps, graduate school programs, driving school, a writers’ workshop in a prison, a modern dance class. After selecting a site to focus on, you should form several research questions related to course themes, ideally emerging from your study of rhetorical theories relevant to this particular group. Finally, you should make contact with the group and arrange an on-site visit and an interview with one or more members of the organization to discover more about the way they use language to create an identity and achieve the goals of their organization. Each student will write a reflective report about what they learned through the process and how rhetoric informed their study and participation.

Required Text and Materials

  • Villanueva, Victor. Bootstraps: From An American Academic of Color. Urbana, IL: NCTE, 1993. Available at Bookstore for $18.95 new, some copies used for less.
  • Select readings made available through Blackboard at the beginning of each unit.
  • Regular internet access for research and to follow course developments via Blackboard.

Requirements for Assignments

  • In- and out-of-class writing and other work will be assigned throughout the course. Students not in class when writing is assigned are still responsible for meeting specified deadlines.
  • Late work will not be accepted without penalty unless students make arrangements for an extension before the due date. Papers and missed presentations will be marked down one letter grade for each day they are late.
  • Students must keep copies of all drafts and assignments until after semester’s end—electronic copies are fine, but do make back-ups of your work. Posting your drafts to Blackboard, as required, takes care of most of this concern.
  • Drafts should show significant changes in purpose, audience, organization, or evidence.
  • All drafts of major assignments must be typed and double-spaced with numbered pages and a title. Other formatting requirements will be explained on assignment sheets for specific tasks. As a general rule, you will need to use a standard font size (Times New Roman, 12-point font) and one-inch margins for each document.

Blackboard and Instructional Technology

Assignments, daily notes, homework tasks, most course readings, and other material will be posted regularly on Blackboard. All drafts of major assignments will be submitted on Blackboard rather than as hard copies, although you may be asked to print drafts of major assignments for purposes of peer review. Peer reviews will often be conducted entirely through Blackboard. In the case of absence, please first refer to Blackboard for homework assignments. I also recommend contacting a peer from class to explain any items you are not clear about; if you still need assistance contact me via email or office hours for further clarification.

Attendance

Attendance is mandatory. Writing courses are workshop classes that include in-class writing, peer group work, and conferences. Therefore, students should not be late and should not miss classes. Any class work missed as a result of tardiness or absence is the student’s responsibility to make up. Students who miss more than four classes on a Tuesday/Thursday schedule may fail the course, according to College policy. Late papers will not be accepted without a valid excuse. Illness, family emergencies, religious holidays, and athletics (with a note specifying which event the student must participate in on a certain date) constitute valid excuses. All holidays or special events observed by organized religions will be honored for students who show affiliation with that particular religion.

Academic Honesty and Plagiarism

St. John Fisher College has a firm policy concerning academic dishonesty that includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, or any other action that misrepresents academic work as being one’s own. Students are expected to demonstrate academic honesty in all coursework, whether completed in class or not, individually, or as part of a group project. Violations of academic honesty include, but are not limited to, cheating and plagiarism. Submitting an item of academic work that has previously been submitted without fair citation of the original work or authorization by the faculty member supervising the work is prohibited. All students are expected to be familiar with the details of the Policy on Academic Honesty, which are found in the online Student Handbook at

Extra Help with Writing

I encourage all students to take advantage of the SJFC Writing Center. When you visit, consultants—other students with skill in writing and training on how to help you write better—assist you with writing tasks from all disciplines and during all stages of the writing process. Individualized service and extensive writer participation during tutorials enable students to become more skillful writers. Resources include a lending library of style manuals, handbooks, dictionaries, and workbooks. Computers and printers are also available for use during regular operating hours.

Hours vary by semester. Writing center services are free of charge to all Fisher students. To make an appointment, visit and follow the instructions. “Walk-ins” are welcome but subject to consultant availability. The Writing Center is located on the top floor of the Academic Gateway. Contact the Writing Center at 585-385-8151 for more information about this service.

Policy on Disabilities

In compliance with St. John Fisher College policy and applicable laws, appropriate academic accommodations are available to you if you are a student with a disability. All requests for accommodations must be supported by appropriate documentation/diagnosis and determined reasonable by SJFC.Students with documented disabilities (physical, learning, psychological) and who may need academic accommodations are advised to make an appointment with the Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities in the Student Development Center, K211. Late notification will delay requested accommodations.

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