Cultural Rhetorics

TORDA'S SPRING 2023 TEACHING SITE

Cultural Rhetorics

3/13/2023

Part I: In lieu of class on 13 March 2023, please post your reading journal that would have been due on Wednesday 2 March 2023. Be sure folks know what your name is when you are posting.

Part II: Read at least one person's journal from someone who IS NOT in your presentation group. Respond in about 200 words to this prompt: what connection do you see between cultural rhetorics and your type of pedagogy? In what ways do you not see a connection? There are many things you can consider as you answer:

Who is doing the research (the author or authors)?
What is the subject of their research?
What methods do they use to conduct that research?
On a timeline, how near or far is this body of research in relation to your pedagogy area?

Starting this conversation will help you to build your presentation.

TO POST: Click on the "comments" button at the top left of the discussion board post, fill out the dialogue box that pops up, and hit "submit."

8 Comments

Izzy Sologaistoa

3/13/2023 09:54:53 am

Summary: In Post-Truth Rhetoric and Composition, Dr. Hegbloom speaks of the post-truth world and how bullshit, fake news, and ethos and pathos at the expense of logos contribute to the Trump effect; an effect that threatens to devastate composition studies.

Bullshit and ethos and pathos at the expense of logos are both purely strategic and unconnected to truth with no regards to reality. Post-truth pathos is the performance of credibility. Trump builds up his own credibility and destroys the credibility of people and institutions that challenge him. This drains institutions of credibility and allows misinformation to be more easily spread. Pathos at the expense of logos results in people neglecting critical thinking in favor of having their feelings reinforced. Trump most often uses name-calling, hyperbole, and metaphor to emphasize pathos as a means of persuasion

Fake news is used to make money or attribute shameful qualities to certain people. It can incite actions that the truth might otherwise discourage. Additionally, machines and algorithms can’t detect fake news, allowing it to spread like wildfire on social media sites. These social media sites’ algorithms also generate customized content for their users, creating online echo chambers.

The Trump effect is the material and social results of successful post-truth rhetoric; anger, fear, angst, and violence. This has caused an increase of hate crimes, bullying, hateful symbols, slur usage, and overall hostility in schools.

Teachers have the potential to counter the negative influence of post-truth rhetoric in their classrooms. Teaching values such as curiosity, openness, engagement, creativity, persistence, responsibility, flexibility, and metacognition will aid in this. Students should also gain rhetorical knowledge; acquire skills in critical thinking, reading and composing; understand the different processes of composing in different contexts and media; and develop a knowledge of conventions and their variability across genres.

Reaction: I agree with the arguments the author is making. I’ve seen and recognized these things throughout my life, but never seen it conceptualized so distinctly and given actual, defined terms with which to discuss it. The article made a lot of sense and explained everything really well.

Reflection: The scariest thing to me about this article is that reading all this from a third person perspective made me realize this sounds a bit dystopian. There’s a lot of ambiguity and vagueness surrounding the truth and reality of things, but there shouldn’t be. Personally, I’m always having to second guess any news or information I see online. I have to actively go out of my way to get different perspectives on things to better cultivate my own opinions. However, being able to do that isn’t accessible to everyone which is what causes a lot of the problematic echo chambers in online spaces.

The article also helped me better understand how it’s not very easy for teachers to address these issues in the classroom. From my experience, it’s very difficult to do so in small schools, especially if the student body is predominantly privileged people. Parents, and sometimes even the students, will complain. I think a lot of people just don’t like having their world view challenged. It takes them out of their comfort zone and forces them to address the internalized biases and prejudices they’ve absorbed from living in this society. That’s also why Trump appeals to so many people, he validates a lot of peoples’ insecurities and fears and lets their world views remain unchanged.

Maddie Scannell

3/13/2023 04:26:44 pm

The concept of rhetoric in writing is composed of several different elements. The post-truth rhetoric is one of them. This concept is based on a few facts, theories, and philosophies that support the central notion of rhetoric. When presented in writing styles, arguments and ideas are also components of rhetoric. Rhetoric also includes a significant amount of the concept of a strong argument and the errors that accompany arguments. The idea of post-truth rhetoric is difficult to confront since it is not anchored in individual claims that may be disputed but rather in larger ideological systems of thinking. People can now give meaning to their present circumstances and the potential outcomes that result from real-life occurrences thanks to this concept. It is not the intention of this concept to reveal the truth or even to deceive. Making people think more broadly, allowing change to occur in specific places, and enhancing daily life are the foundations of this concept. Untrue news I'd like to throw a lot of water into this post-truth rhetoric notion. It might be challenging to distinguish between what is real and what is phony because there is a thin line between the two. In his analysis of modern political discourse, McComiskey examines the use of "bullshit," "fake news," "feigned ethos," "hyperbole," and other post-truth rhetorical devices. This article spends a lot of time on Donald Trump and how his personality and traits might be used to anticipate the kind of president he would become. The two characteristics of Trump's personality that relate most to the great notion of post-rhetoric and the idea of having to act are his relationship to it and his relationship to the idea of having to act. Pathos and logos are also related to this principle because this is how credibility is demonstrated whether it is genuine or not. People have been interested in Trump's personality since it has been linked to his behaviors in words and across psychology. Trump attacks instead of attempting to connect or completely establish his ideas when he is pressed, as this article claims. The validity of the information This connects to and discusses two examples, connects to the ethos he uses, and connects to the overarching fundamental notion. Trump used unethical rhetorical tactics to win the election, including alt-right false news, ambiguous social media statements, policy reversals, and meaning denial. In rhetorical philosophy, "post-truth" relates to the traditional triad of logos, ethos, and pathos. McComiskey demonstrates that the perils of post-truth expose us because we have lost our foundation. This is an excellent notion to have in writing because it enables people to be aware of the fake news that occurs in our culture because logos is the domain of fact, logic, truth, and good reasoning. It enables writers to ensure that they consistently adhere to the facts and reasoning they want to express in their own work. Understanding post-truth rhetoric may help you appreciate other people's creations and recognize inaccurate information.

Anna Langtry

3/14/2023 04:36:49 pm

Part 2 response
The research is being done by both Dr. Hegbloom and the authors that she quoted throughout the article. The authors that Dr. Hegbloom quoted did their own research, and Dr. Hegbloom would have to do her own research in order to find these authors and their works. The subject of Dr. Hegbloom’s research was post-truth rhetoric, however, she then broke it down into four different categories and applied them to the Trump effect.
When you compare the dates from this article to the important dates of process pedagogy, they are not close to each other. Many of the key dates for process pedagogy are in the eighties and nineties, while this article has dates from the early two thousand to the twenty-tens. Along with this, these two things don’t share many commonalities. Process pedagogy is more about being able to write and the process of writing without having to write in the traditional way. This article is more about the effects of post-truth rhetoric specifically applied to the Trump effect.

Anna Langtry

3/14/2023 09:36:15 am

In “Post-Truth Rhetoric” by Dr. Maria Hegbloom, talks about how we are in a post-truth world, a world without truth or lies, and language has become purely strategic. A key part of the post-truth world is the role that politicians play in it, and they use this to their advantage as they crave ambition and want to achieve leadership. However, the goal of the post-truth rhetoric is to try and undermine the notion of truth as it is. In this, Dr. Hegbloom specifically talks about the effects of bullshit, fake news, ethos, and pathos and how they would pertain to the Trump effect, which started after Trump’s election.
It begins with the section on Bullshit and this talks about Harry G. Frankfurt who wrote a book called “On Bullshit” in 2005. In this book, Frankfurt talks about how the “bullshitter” is not trying to describe anything correctly, they are just trying to say things that will suit what they are trying to say or do. This means that the “bullshitter” may not be saying what they really believe in or how they feel about something. It mainly affects the audience who is listening to politicians, as they have no regard for if the information they are being presented is true or not.
Then it moves to Fake News, which talks about how fake news has changed since the end of WWII. One of the most common sources of fake news that Hegbloom talks about is from websites that spread fake stories in order to make money by helping boost certain beliefs. One of the most common reasons for fake news to be spread is to advertise the shameful qualities of certain people, who are usually their political opponents. During Trump’s election, fake news increased greatly, to the point where it was viewed more than the top election stories from 19 major news outlets. He had spread many false conspiracies, causing an even bigger increase in fake news.
The section on Ethos explained that while Trump has a big personality, that does not mean that ethos and personality are the same things. It was noted in the cited article “The Mind of Donald Trump” by Donald P. McAdams that Trump had always seemed to be acting, which fits in with the post-truth ethos: the performance of credibility, regardless of if the credibility is real or fake. The next section is about Pathos, and how it has an important role when it comes to post-truth rhetoric. This is due to the fact that if you can control the emotional foundations of the audience, then you can feed them any information and they’ll accept it. Trump uses this to his advantage, by tapping into his audience’s anger and feeding them information that’s in his favor.
While I understand what is being said throughout the text about Trump, I still don’t fully understand the post-truth rhetoric. I get the general idea of what’s being said, but it’s still confusing to me right now.

Hanley Callahan

3/15/2023 10:14:07 am

I see a strong connection between Critical Pedagogy and cultural rhetoric. Considering that much of my group’s pedagogy is focused on the discussion and engagement of students with social justice issues, as well as enabling them to employ critical thinking as a means of forming their own beliefs/opinions about these issues, Hegbloom’s research fits hand in hand. Hegbloom spent a significant portion of her article employing both her own research, as well as the research of several other contributors. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a works cited to draw from to examine the names/dates of the sources, but I did notice that many of the writings she pulled from were from the early 2000s up till about 2016. However, Critical Pedagogy’s studies were concentrated right before this time period, from around the 1970s to the late 90s. However, I think this means that in some ways the two could work in tandem, with Critical Pedagogy laying somewhat of a foundation for Hegbloom’s argument that is important to teach students rhetorical knowledge so that they will know how to engage with social injustice such as Trumps racism, sexism, and overall abuse of minorities through his manipulation of facts and language.

Hanley Callahan

3/15/2023 09:49:35 am

Dr. Maria Hegbloom’s work opens with the defining of the term “post-truth” as the state in which language is disconnected from universal truths, realities, and facts that are accepted to be true, yet still upheld in a rhetorical context as an acceptable form of speaking and writing. Hegbloom makes specific note to the epistemological continuum that serves as the foundation for established facts and universal truths. This continuum is what post-truth neglects, through undermining accepted methods of rhetorical language, as well as the introduction of ‘bullshitting’ and fake news that allow pathos and ethos to obliterate the necessity of logos in order to persuade audiences. Hegbloom pinpoints a strong connection between bullshitting and fake news, the indifference to what is established as reality in order to directly suit one’s purpose in order to perpetuate ‘facts’ that manipulate social, political, and economic understandings of the world as we know it. All of this so that politicians like Trump are able to play into their strength of rallying fear and anger instead of kindness and compassion, to essentially manipulate their audiences into tapping into those same traits to garner support. She continues on to explain how in a post-truth world, the traditional understanding of ethos, pathos, and logos is distorted to bolster the speakers claims, not through acquisition of such things to one’s person, but through the undermining of those same qualities in that of non-supporters. With the inflation and exaggeration of ethos and pathos, Hegbloom illuminates the ways in which Trump is able to invalidate credible sources by challenging their logos, as well as nurture the paranoid rage fostered by much of his audience to hide his falsified information. In both instances, rhetoric appears to be pushed to the back burner, as Trump relies on his personality to do the persuading for him. To wrap up her writing, she highlights the specific impact of Trump on the day to day interactions between white and minority students, pointing out the ways in which post-truth rhetoric has altered a fundamental form of communication between the young people who will be the next up and coming thinkers in this country. She stresses the necessity of teaching young people how to think for themselves, not only to build upon their own writing skills, but to learn how to question and filter the information that is bombarding them in order to form their own beliefs and opinions based in fact, not the manipulation of fact. Otherwise, Hegbloom despairs, there is little hope for future generations to harbor respect and empathy as they move from their grade school bubble into the real world.
Hegbloom’s article provides more than sufficient evidence to back her ultimate claim of the necessity of nurturing critical thinking, reading and composing, contextualization, and curiosity, as highlighted in the WPA Outcomes Statement. Her argument holds true, especially after reading page after page of trumps atrocious abuse of language. It’s interesting to see the ways in which Trump’s obscure and harmful language have bled into academic systems like public education in the U.S. The importance of teaching rhetoric, and also the unlearning of social media and fake news as a primary source of factual information, is rendered essential in the growing reflection of political bullshit in the behaviors and speech of young people. This article ties in directly with my group’s topic of Critical Pedagogy. All of the behaviors that Trump is exhibiting is exactly what educators who employ this specific type of rhetoric are looking to combat in their classroom dialogue. Teaching civil discussion, the questioning of established authorities and systems is key to what defines Critical Pedagogy. What Hegbloom is calling for sounds to me like the implementation of some critical thinking and analysis of social justice issues in order to produce better thinkers that will be able to create change in a post-truth world.

Emma Voelker

3/15/2023 03:35:11 pm

The author of this piece on post-truth rhetoric in particular is by Dr. Maria Hegbloom and focuses on the growing popularity of said rhetoric during the presidential campaign of Donald Trump. Trump is not the only employer of this form of rhetoric, but we began to see it heavily utilized by him. For specific methods, it seems that she analyzed him almost as a case study and discussing the different things that he employs in his everyday speak. Then, Hegbloom discusses how this influences his audience and most importantly, talks about ways that composition teachers can teach students in a way that stops them from learning these habits. Regarding my subject of feminist pedagogy, there are some similarities but it's overall quite different. Feminist pedagogy focuses on dismantling certain stigmas that are built into our system, while this form is trying to unteach or fix teachings that lead to basing opinions off of words with no facts to back them up.

Emma Voelker

3/15/2023 10:18:03 am

While the study of rhetoric has existed for thousands of years, the concept of “post-truth rhetoric” only came to fruition at the turn of the 21st century. The article takes the reader through a chronological journey throughout the discipline; beginning with defining it, moving onto examples, especially the dangerous example that is Donald Trump, and concluding with how we must combat this form of rhetoric and why. Often employed by politicians, post-truth rhetoric is one that lacks both truth and lies in which language “becomes purely strategic, without reference to anything other than itself,” (8). The piece heavily discusses the election of Donald Trump, which is the perfect instance to discuss. Post-truth rhetoric is based entirely on ethos and pathos with little or no reference to logos. “In a post-truth world, audiences do not seek information on which to base their opinions; they seek opinions that support their own beliefs,” (12). This practice is only able to flourish because less and less people are starting to care about facts and more so care about finding what matches their own agenda, whether it’s truthful or not. The author discusses the rhetorical devices that Donald Trump himself applied during his run in the 2016 election: ethos in the form of adjusting his personality to fit whatever situation he is in and pathos in the form of “name-calling, hyperbole, and metaphor,” (29).
This article felt both familiar and foreign at the same time; it discusses something that I was aware of, but I had never thought this deeply about. Trump is unarguably a terrible person, but he knew who his target audience was during the election cycle and how to reach them through his words. It’s quite scary the power that words without truth can hold. On the surface, forms of post-truth rhetoric may seem like they don’t have much impact on anything, but this practice can lead to real-world consequences. It’s interesting but also so frustrating how people will believe anything, even if it’s baseless and not supported by any facts, if it matches the beliefs they already have.
Reading this article brought me down the path of the first-year writing class that most college freshmen take. We’ve read many articles and had discussions about how useful the first-year writing class is as we know it today. As a result, I’ve concluded that in its current state it isn’t useful, but it has the potential to be so much more. People like Donald Trump can gain an audience for several reasons, one of which being because people are not being properly educated on rhetoric. If we keep going in this direction, the entirety of the composition field will likely be full of this post-truth rhetoric. According to the text, writing teachers are one of the best options in educating our future generations. “The Framework (2011) describes eight habits of mind… curiosity, openness, engagement, creativity, persistence, responsibility, flexibility, and metacognition,” (38). These are all things that if one lacks, they are more susceptible to believe post-truth rhetorical techniques. The text also suggests incorporating collaborative activities as students will be able to hear the perspectives of one another, instead of being stuck inside their own little bubble of thought. The first-year writing class isn’t something that should disappear entirely, but it has the potential to be so much more than it currently is. I would even dare to say that it has the potential to push the mindsets of the public in a more positive direction.

Cultural Rhetorics

Leave a Reply.

ENGL 226

Archives

Categories