Finds confirmation of the humanizing influence of language in anthropological and linguistic studies, in creation myths, and in the lives of individuals such as Anne Frank and Helen Keller. Sees in George Orwell's "1984" and Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels" examples of the dehumanization created by empty or deceptive…

Criticizes the overemphasis on change in recent rhetorical theory at the expense of enduring elements. The centrality of language in human experience is discussed as constituting a permanent core in rhetorical theory and forming the basis of rhetoric as a humane and substantive art. (JMF)

It is argued that: (1) the language of teaching-effectiveness and teacher-competency research is promoting subtly a technical and political ideology; and (2) the efforts of this research activity serve to perpetuate a set of myths about the teaching experience. An alternative focus on the "unique person who teaches" is suggested for…