Professor: Catherine H. Palczewski, Ph.D. Office: Lang Hall 341

Office hours:

• Tuesday 4:45-5:15
• Wednesday 1:00-3:00
• Thursday 4:45-5:15
• no office hours March 4, 5; April 15, 16

If these times do not work, feel free to call (319.273.2714) or email to make an appointment.

Teaching assistant: Cecilia Cerja (cerjac@uni.edu) Office: Lang 367

Office hours:

• Tuesday 12:00-2:00
• by appointment

 

Acknowledgments:

This syllabus would not be possible without the assistance of Ryan McGeough, who also teaches this course at UNI. Faculty at UNI and other universities also have shared their ideas, assignments and syllabi, and I thank them for their help: Richard Ice, John Fritch, Isaac West, Leah White, Christopher Martin, Heather Hayes, and David Cisneros. This syllabus is better because of them. I also acknowledge the land on which we gather is the occupied territory of the Ioway, Sauk and Meskwaki, Wahpeton, and Sioux People.

“Rhetoric may be defined as the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion.” – Aristotle

Significant rhetors are “those able to realign material life experiences and cultural symbols through the artful use of the available means of persuasion.”–  John Louis Lucaites and Celeste Michelle Condit

“[Rhetoric is] the use of language as a symbolic means of inducing cooperation in beings that by nature respond to symbols.” – Kenneth Burke

“Because of demagogues, rhetoric has a tainted reputation in our time. However, rhetoric is central to democratic governance. It can fuse passion and persuasion, moving free people to freely choose what is noble.”– George Will

“When you speak, . . . you not only have to assume responsibility for speaking those words, but you are responsible for the effect of those words on the person you are addressing and the thousands of years of tribal memory packed into your understanding of those words. So, when you speak, you need to know what you are speaking about. You need to perceive or imagine the impact of your words on the listener and understand the responsibility that goes with being a speaker. We are all responsible in that way. We are all thinking people. We all have that ability and we all have that responsibility. We may not want to have that responsibility or we may feel unworthy of that responsibility, but every time we speak we have that responsibility. Everything we say affects someone, someone is hearing it, someone is understanding it, someone is going to take it and it becomes memory. We are all powerful, each one of us individually. We are able to make things change, to make things happen differently. We are all able to heal.” – Jeanette Armstrong

Description: Exploration of theories explaining how symbolic action creates, maintains, and transforms social reality, plays a role in social/political/cultural orders, differs between groups, and affects social change. Particular attention paid to the role of rhetoric in civic culture.

Purpose:As you have learned over courses in the major, communication plays a central role in your lives. It creates and maintains personal relationships and communication skills are essential to any career. As important, communication also plays a civic role. Communication is necessary to define community and national identity, to develop and advocate for solutions to public problems, and to clarify and resolve areas of disagreement. In this class, we will explore how rhetoric relates to politics, law, language, and knowledge in order to understand the role of rhetoric in contemporary society and public life. As a capstone course, assignments are writing intensive. The assignments in this course represent a chance for you to develop and refine your voice as an advocate, to learn how to participate in civic culture, and to critically analyze attempts to persuade.

By the end of the semester, you will be able to:

• understand how symbolic action creates, maintains, and transforms social reality,
• identify how theories of rhetoric’s role in civic culture have developed over time,
• apply rhetorical theories to better understand your own communicative actions, others’ communication, and social/political/cultural orders,
• enter into a discussion of rhetorical theory using a precise vocabulary of rhetorical terms, and
• critically evaluate theories of rhetoric.

Readings:

Textbook: Palczewski, C. H., Ice, R., Fritch, J. (2016). Rhetoric in civic life (2nd Ed.). State College, PA: Strata Publishing.*
*Any royalties earned from assigning the textbook to this class are donated to a UNI scholarship fund.

Scholarly and popular press readings: Posted on the UNI eLearning site or linked to this syllabus. You should print out these readings, make notes on them, and bring them to class.

<this might change> Class supplies: You should buy a small packet of lined notebook paper on which you can complete in-class reading reflections. (e.g., College Ruled Filler Paper, 8" x 10-1/2", 120/Pack costs $1 at staples.)

General Information: See my website, at www.uni.edu/palczews/general.htm. This site includes my late policy, the university accommodation policy, the university plagiarism policy, as well as paper format descriptions -- basically Cate's rules for survival. You should really take the time to read this.

Interaction Expectations: Pedagogically, the class will be structured around a discussion format. Lively debate, discussion, and disagreement on issues are encouraged in class. For this to be productive, respect for other people, their opinions, and their experiences is essential. The most productive way to disagree with another is to say, “I disagree with you because…” and explain and justify your position. Although everyone is entitled to their opinion, the reality is that some opinions are better supported and more reasonable than other opinions; thus, be able to explain why you hold the opinion you do and why you think your opinion is better supported than another’s. Engage each other in a reasoned exchange of ideas. In other words, present an argument (a claim supported by data, with reasons/warrants as to why that data is relevant to the claim).

Throughout the semester we will encounter a variety of challenging issues relating to gender, sexuality, race, class, etc. The content of this class has the potential to stir up strong reactions. You will encounter ideas and theories that challenge you. Students are asked to follow some guidelines to help maintain a constructive learning environment. Participants in this class must be open to looking at an issue from a variety of perspectives. Further, it is possible that films, readings, images, music, etc. used in this class may be considered offensive by some. A student’s decision to stay enrolled in the class is an agreement to approach all course content with a critical academic lens. Above all, participants must treat each other with respect. The most fundamental way to respect class participants is to complete daily readings, listen to others, and ground your own comments in principles of critical thinking. Class discussions should take place within the context of academic inquiry and in the spirit of understanding diverse perspectives and experiences. Do not engage in private conversations, interrupt another student who has the floor, keep cell phones on, or show general signs of disrespect for the course, professor, or other students. Non-course related materials such as newspapers and items from other courses must be stowed away when class begins.

I encourage you to put away your electronic devices. Research has convincingly demonstrated that students retain and learn better when taking notes with pen and paper, not laptops or tablets. Laptops tend to create distractions, induce shallow processing, and result in weaker performance when answering conceptual questions (like those on tests or during discussion). Although you might type more words with the laptop, you lose the chance to synthesize ideas and focus on key concepts.

Undergraduate Assignments

Assignments are worth a total of 100 points. However, for each assignment you can earn fractions of points (so, you can think of it as a 1000 point scale if it makes you feel better). If you need to figure your letter grade at any point in the semester, simply divide the number of points you have by the number of possible points you could have earned. For your final grade, simply add up all the points for each assignment.

The individual point value of each assignment is noted immediately following the assignment title. Simply doing the base requirements of each assignment will earn you a "C" -- this means you have done acceptable work. To earn a "B" you must go beyond the assignment expectations or fulfill them in an above average way. To earn an "A" you must go far beyond the assignment expectations and fulfill the expectations in an exceptional manner.

Detailed descriptions of all assignments appear on this syllabus. You are free to ask questions in class about the assignments, or contact me outside of class by email or phone. But, please be aware, I will NOT answer any questions about an assignment's expectations during the class period immediately before it is due. I recognize that students procrastinate, so consider this an inducement to begin work early. This means if you have a question, you need to be prepared to ask it during class sessions during the week before the paper is due. I will not answer general assignment expectation questions after that time. However, I will answer specific questions about work you have completed toward the assignment.

1. Reading Reflections (10 @ 4 points each, 40 points total. More than 10 reading reflections are possible; if you complete more than 10, the top 10 grades will count.)

Classes (usually Tuesday, but not always) will begin with an in-class, written reflection on the week’s assigned readings. You must be present in class to complete a reading reflection (unless you are missing class for a university sponsored activity or have talked to me in advance about your absence and worked out an alternative). I will provide the reflection prompt at the beginning of class, and you will have the first 15 to 20 minutes of class to write your reflection statements. These reflections will assess whether you have completed and thought about the readings and will be used as the foundation for discussion and lectures. The time gives you a chance to organize your thoughts, think through the implications of what you learned from the readings, draw connections between the textbook and non-textbook readings, and identify places where you might have questions. To do well on the reflections, you need to have completed the readings, taken notes, and thought about the readings.

To prepare to write these reflections, you should:

*Print out the non-textbook readings, underline key passages, and make notes on them. You may use print-outs of the non-textbook readings during the reflection.
*Take notes on the textbook readings. You should print out your notes and bring them to class to use them during the reading reflections. (If you choose to underline and make margin notes in the textbook, or if you use annotated sticky notes to mark key passages in the textbook, you may use the textbook during the reflection. Blank textbooks may not be used.)

The following questions may be useful to guide your note taking for all of the readings:

1.  What is the most important point/argument in this reading?
2.  How can you summarize the reading in 2 sentences?
3.  Do you agree or disagree with the reading's main points?  Why?
4.  How does the reading relate to your own experiences of rhetoric in civic culture? The discussion questions at the end of each textbook chapter can help guide your thinking through this question.
5.  What did you not understand in reading?
6.  How does the non-textbook reading illustrate concepts from the textbook?
7.  Each textbook chapter identifies key terms. Provide a definition of each term, and think of an example that illustrates it.

The reflections will be graded based on the following criteria:

1.  A clear argument is offered. The reflection prompts will ask you to take a position. Do you clearly identify your central claim and provide reasons to back up the claim? Your reflection statement should include developed reasoning. You need to explain the “why” behind your responses.

2. The reflection statements demonstrate familiarity with the assigned readings by including references to specific concepts and arguments presented in the readings. The more detailed and specific your answer, the better. However, the details and specifics need to be relevant to the questions asked in the prompt.

3.  The reflection statements demonstrate you have come to class prepared to discuss all the readings assigned for the day.

4. The reflection statements accurately define and apply key concepts from the readings.

5.  All parts of the reflection prompt are answered.

2. Advocacy paper (50 points total): The rhetorical art of public advocacy requires you to be self-reflexive about the choices you make when constructing an appeal. In the contemporary media ecology, it also requires an ability to write concisely and clearly. This assignment is meant to have you critically work through the writing process and the construction of an argument for public advocacy. Choice is central to making strong rhetorical appeals. Thus, the length of the paper will shrink as the semester proceeds, pushing you to make choices about language, images, narratives, evidence, argument, persona, and audience. You will receive edits on each paper that you should incorporate as you write the next version. Attach the earlier version to the next paper (attach edits on paper 1 to paper 2 and the edits on paper 2 to paper 3).

TurnItIn requirement: For each stage of the advocacy paper, students are required to use TurnItIn in order to check they are not plagiarizing. Thus, for an assignment to be considered "turned in", students must have submitted an electronic version to TurnItIn before the assignment's due date and time, and also turn in a paper copy to me at the assigned due date and time. I have activated the TurnItIn website in such a way that you are allowed to submit drafts of your paper and receive originality reports. You need to actually look at the paper and see if any problematic passages are highlighted by Turnitin. Do not just rely on the percentage report. These reports should be used to assist you in making sure you are attributing authorship in an ethical way. The only originality report I will see is the final report on the version of the paper you turn in to me. Students can access the TurnItIn website for each assignment via the class's eLearning site. The TurnItIn links for all assignments are located in a folder on the eLearning site. Please understand: using TurnItIn is only the first step in making sure your are abiding by citation guidelines and providing fair attribution. TurnItIn is only one way to check the originality of your work, and just because your work passes the TurnItIn check does not guarantee you have not plagiarized. You are responsible for using style manuals to make sure your citation format is correct and consistent. Given you are expected to have consulted the TurnItIn originality report before you turn your paper into me, there will be ZERO TOLERANCE for any citation or paraphrase errors that result in you plagiarizing (presenting others' words as your own). Even a minor infraction will result in a zero on the assignment and a permanent letter placed in your file. A major infraction will result in an F for the class. If TurnItIn marks something as problematic, and you do not understand why or know you are using you own words, write a note in the margin on your paper explaining why you think the TurnItIn indicator is wrong.

Page limits on all assignments will be rigorously enforced. A key function of this assignment is to induce you to find ways to write more concisely and clearly.

Good Essay link: All papers should put into practice the skills and techniques learned in basic writing classes. Here is a link to a general checklist to consult when preparing an essay. For each draft, you should print out the checklist and initial each item you completed (you should complete them all).

Completion checklist for each draft of the paper: To be turned in you need to:

• Before class, submit to TurnItIn (and review the submission, making any needed changes and resubmitting)
• In class, submit a paper version of your essay, the works cited, and the Good Essay checklist. For drafts 2 and 3, you also need to include edits of drafts 1 and 2 (respectively).

Grading: The papers will be graded based on the following criteria:

1. Clear writing that is free of typographical, grammar, and spelling errors.
2. Correct references/works cited, preferably APA, MLA, or Chicago. Incorrect citation format will result in an automatic deduction of at least 25%. A bibliography should be turned in with every assignment. It will not count toward your page limit. On the top of the bibliography, indicate the style (APA, MLA, or Chicago) that you think you are using.
3. Quality evidence.
4. Clear organization.
5. Clear argument.
6. Fair accounting of and response to opposing arguments.
7. Integration and/or use of class concepts (e.g., avoid fallacies, use of vivid metaphor, consideration of narrative, use of ideographs, attention to audience, etc.).

2A. Paper 1 Topic exploration: 10 pages long (10 points) Due February 11

Select some topic related to a public policy controversy in which you are interested. The topic can be global (e.g., climate change, nuclear non-proliferation, Israel/Palestine peace, refugees, deforestation), national (e.g., tax law, health insurance, immigration, CHIP, reparations, sexual harassment), state-level (e.g., collective bargaining, privatization of Medicaid, monuments, non-point source pollution), or local (e.g., renters’ rights, tuition, campus policies, safe bike lanes, community policing). Please talk to me or Cecilia about your topic early in the semester so we can confirm it will be a good one to work on for the class.

Research the topic using reputable sources (10 sources required, provided in a works cited/references page using correct APA, MLA, or Chicago/Turabian format); the references/works cited page does not count toward your page total. Scholarly articles, research based articles, white papers from reputable think tanks, etc. are ideal. Part of the grade on this paper is earned by using quality sources.

Identify some policy/institutional change you think should be enacted in response to a problem. A clear policy statement requires you to identify an action and the agent who should take that action.

Review the core arguments on all sides of the topic and the reasons behind them. Present the strongest arguments on all sides. Remember the concepts you learned in oral communication or cornerstone about persuasive/policy speeches. To advocate for a policy, you need to:

• clearly define and identify a problem
• clearly articulate a proposed solution to the problem, identifying the action and the agent that should take that action
• explain why the proposed solution actually fixes the problem
• explain why the benefits of the proposed solution outweigh any harms

To argue the other side you could:

• argue the problem does not exist
• explain why the solution does not fix the problem (because the problem is caused by something else or because the solution will fail)
• identify an alternative way to fix the problem that avoids the costs of the proposed solution
• argue that the costs of the solution outweigh any benefits

If you do not remember these things from earlier classes, you can read chapter 4 as a refresher.

Conclude the paper with a statement of your initial position on the topic. Do you think the proposed policy is a good or bad idea?

2B. Paper 2 Position advocacy: 5 pages long (15 points).  Due March 10

Start the paper with a statement of your position: what should be done and by whom?

Develop the arguments for your position. Explain why you hold your position despite the opposing arguments (e.g., rebut the arguments or explain why they do not disprove you position).

Research and add an additional 10 sources. Not all sources need to be quoted, but to be able to select the best evidence to support your advocacy, you need to have a range of evidence from which to choose.

Include a 1 page outline for this paper as a cover page. Think about organization: do you systematically work through the stock issues involved in policy argument?

Attach the graded first paper to the back of this paper as well as your completed Good Paper checklist.

2C. Paper 4 Final paper: 2 pages long (25 points). Due April 28. 

Refine and condense your argument. Make sure your policy statement (aka thesis statement) specifies what should be done and by whom.

Carefully consider word choice. Use the most vivid/evocative/powerful/appropriate/effective metaphors, narratives, ideographs, characterizations, language choices you can think of.

Submit your paper to a public forum. To be considered “turned in,” your final paper must be submitted to some public forum (e.g., a letter to the editor, political blog, comments section on a newspaper or magazine website, the appropriate policy maker’s website, etc.).

Attach the graded second paper to the back of this paper, your completed Good Paper checklist, a screen shot of the submitted post, and a 250 word reflection justifying your selection of publication outlet and detailing your reaction to participating in public dialogue.

3. This I Believe Speech (10 points): During final exam period (May 6, 1:00-2:50pm), each student will deliver a 5 minute long speech. The core of the speech should be tied to a principle or value that was central to your paper (e.g., if your paper was about climate change or national debt, you might focus the speech on our responsibility to future generations; if your paper was about health care, the speech may be about how access to affordable health care is a right; if your paper was about sexual harassment, the speech may be about empathy and justice).

This Assignment is based on Edward R. Murrow’s 1950s radio series and the contemporary “This I Believe” project (see https://thisibelieve.org/).

For examples , see http://www.npr.org/series/4538138/this-i-believe
I recommend:
“The Art Of Being A Neighbor” by Eve Birch
“Dancing To Connect To A Global Tribe” by Matt Harding
“My Father Deserves Spectacular Results” by Van Jones
“Seeing Beyond Our Differences” by Dr. Sheri White
“The Magic of Letters” by Chameli Waiba
“How To Survive Life’s Tests” by Kendra Jones
“Our Awareness Controls Human Destiny” by Margaret Mead
“Listening Is Powerful Medicine” by Alicia Conill
“Health Is A Human Right” by Dr. Paul Farmer

Description:

1. You may deliver the speech using a typed outline. The outline may be no longer than one page. This means you will need to practice the speech to make sure you remember key phrases.
2. Bring an extra copy of the outline to turn in before you speak. I will take notes on your outline.
3. Length: 5 minutes
4. This speech explains and grounds a deeply held belief.

Objectives: The purpose of this speech is
*to encourage you to be specific and declarative – e.g., THIS I believe . . .
*to encourage you to find your voice
*to give you experience publicly advocating for your beliefs
*to help you recognize how much information can be covered in a short amount of time
*to help you transfer the skills of selection, organization, and focus learned in the written paper to an oral presentation

Helpful hints: The “This I Believe” website offers the following suggestions when writing an essay. I have edited them to work for your speech:
Tell a story about you: Be specific. Take your belief out of the ether and ground it in the events that have shaped your core values. Consider moments when belief was formed or tested or changed. Think of your own experience, work, [community activism,] and family, and tell of the things you know that no one else does. Your story need not be heart-warming or gut-wrenching—it can even be funny—but it should be real. Make sure your story ties to the essence of your daily life philosophy and the shaping of your beliefs.
Be brief: [The original essays in the project called for statements] between 500 and 600 words. [You should be able to fill a 5 minutes speech.]
Name your belief: If you can’t name it in a sentence or two, your essay might not be about belief. Also, rather than writing a list, consider focusing on one core belief.
Be positive: Write about what you do believe, not what you don’t believe. Avoid statements of religious dogma, preaching, or editorializing.
Be personal: Make your [speech] about you; speak in the first person. Avoid speaking in the editorial “we.” Tell a story from your own life; this is not an opinion piece about social ideals. [Choose] words and phrases that are comfortable for you to speak. We recommend you [practice your speech] aloud to yourself several times, and each time edit it and simplify it until you find the words, tone, and story that truly echo your belief and the way you speak.

Possible Outline:

I. Introduction:

A. Attention grabber
B. Name one core belief

II. Body:

A. Tell a story that grounds the belief
B. Develop 2-3 key elements of the belief

1. Element 1
2. Element 2
3. Element 3

C. Identify the implications of this belief – the effect it has on your daily actions and choices

III. Conclusion:

A. Summarize main themes
B. Concluding thought

Good presentation link: All presentations should put into practice the skills and techniques learned in Oral Communication and/or Public Speaking classes. Here is a link to a general checklist to consult when preparing a presentation.

**************************************************************************

Graduate Student Assignments:

Graduate students develop their own assignment track, tailored to their graduate school objectives. By the end of the second week of class, graduate students should have turned in an assignment proposal that includes,

1) name of assignments,

2) descriptions,

3) due dates,

4) point worths (model it after the assignment descriptions in the syllabus)

5) criteria for grading

6) in addition to the readings assigned to undergraduates, graduate students are expected to complete additional readings. I am willing to assign readings that fit into the week's topic, or I can develop a bibliography tailored to the student's interest. If you want the latter option, propose topic/s on which you would like to complete additional assignments.

Your assignment proposal should be as detailed as this syllabus.

Syllabus: (This syllabus is subject to change, although that rarely happens.) If changes happen, they will be in hot pink. The bibliographic form used in the syllabus is APA (with full first names).

1: January 14, 16

Rhetoric as Civic Action

review the syllabus before class

read the new chapter 1, "Rhetoric as Civic Action," sent over email

2: January 21, 23

Rhetoric as Symbolic Action

RiCL 6-13, 16 (section on rhetoric as addressed), 20-31

Paoletti, Jo Barraclough (2012). Pink and blue: Telling the boys from the girls in America. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.  Print and read pages 85-99. Available online through Rod Library.

3: January 28, 30

Language as Symbolic Action

RiCL 41-57

Peacekeeper memo, on eLearning.

Kauffman, Charles. (1989). Names and weapons. Communication Monographs, 56, 273-285. on eLearning

4: February 4, 6

Language, con't.

RiCL 58-63

Rankine, Claudia. (2014). III in Citizen: An American lyric (pp. 41-55). Minneapolis, MN: Greywolf Press. On eLearning

Lakoff, George. (2003, August 20). Framing the Dems. The American Prospect.

5: February 11, 13

Visual Rhetoric: Photographs and Bodies

RiCL 69-84

Allen, Danielle. (2004). Chapter 2. Talking to strangers: Anxieties of citizenship Since Brown v. Board of Education (pp. 9-24). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. on eLearning

Watch “This man uses “visually provocative” activism to fight racial injustice. Huffpost. Glenn Cantave on “Movers and Shakers.”

Explore the Movers and Shakers website, especially
“About”
“Out Approach”
“Photos”

February 11: Paper 1 due

6: February 18, 20

Visual rhetoric: Monuments and image events

RiCL 84-92

Landrieu, Mitch. (2017, May 23). Speech on the removal of Confederate monuments in New Orleans. New York Times.

Sayev, Nadja. (2017, December 21). “A new vision of who we are”: The inclusive monuments to reinvigorate America. The Guardian.

7: February 25, 27

Argument – Toulmin model

Chapter 4: Argument pp. 1-18, on eLearning

Toulmin model: p. 109 of textbook or document on eLearning

8: March 3, 5

Argument – Public Argument

Chapter 4: Argument pp. 18-45, on eLearning

Fabj, Valeria and Matthew J. Sobnosky. "AIDS Activism and the Rejuvenation of the Public Sphere." Argumentation and Advocacy, vol. 31, Spring 1995, pp. 163-184. On eLearning

9: March 10, 12

Narrative

RiCL ch. 5

10: March 17, 19 Spring Break

11: March 24, 26

Rhetors

RiCL ch. 6

Rucker, Philip. (2017, August 23). Trump’s whiplash: Three personas in three speeches, but the same president. Washington Post.

12: March 31, April 2

Audiences

RiCL ch. 7

Topp, Sarah. (2015). Disturbing images: Medical photography of the bodies of intersex individuals. In Catherine H. Palczewski (Ed.), Disturbing argument (pp. 117-122).  New York, NY: Routledge. On eLearning

13: April 7, 9

Rhetorical Situations

RiCL ch. 8

Watch 1491s (2012, September 21). I'm an Indian too [video]. You Tube, www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BHvpWP2V9Y. Link

14: April 14, 16

Publics and counterpublics

RiCl 265-281

Williams, Terry Tempest. (2004). Commencement in The open space of democracy (pp. 2-24). Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock. On eLearning

15: April 21, 23

Networked public sphere

RiCL 281-297

Pfister, Damien. Technoliberal rhetoric, civic attention, and common sensation in Sergey Brin's "Why Google Glass?" Quarterly Journal of Speech, 105(2), 182-203. On eLearning

16: April 28, 30

speech workshopping

April 28: Paper 3 due