COMM 5650 - Western Rhetorical Theory

Goals: To gain an understanding of how Western theorists have attempted to explain communication processes, in particular how public communication has been studied, explained, taught, and criticized. To examine the ways in which these theoretical approaches have influenced current thinking about the kinds of communications and voices that are considered legitimate, dismissed or discounted and why that might happen. To consider the implications of these perspectives and limitations on what is taken to be knowledge.

Content: Theories of public communication from the sophists and philosophers of ancient Greece and Rome, through the Medieval period, Renaissance and the Enlightenment, to contemporary times. Emphasis is on understanding how ideas about communication evolved over time, the implications of these perspectives for those who do not have power in society as well as for those who do, and the application of these ideas in the world of today.

Taught: Annually

Prerequisite: None, but junior/senior standing is recommended

Credits: 4