This paper discusses ideologues, both of the far Left and the far Right, and their influences on the American political structure and our "traditional pluralistic politics," which is defined as the concept traditionally held in this country that politics function within a clash of interests, sectional and group, and that political…

Two experiments were conducted to test predictions made for attitude change interactions between the source-message orientation of recipients of a persuasive communication and various components of interpersonal and mass media communication situations. In Study 1, it was predicted that the presence of the source or the anticipation of discussing…

The chief insistence of the educational reform that Peter Ramus initiated in the sixteenth century in England was that the liberal arts should exist as separate and distinct disciplines, divided from one another. He split the old rhetorical laws to avoid duplication between dialectic and rhetoric and thus influenced the style of preaching found in…

Rhetoric and law had mutually beneficial influences on each other during the Graeco-Roman era. The relationship deteriorated during the middle ages because of a universal decline in learning, culture, and social organization; the hostility of the church toward rhetoric as a pagan concept; and the feudal structure in which there was no system of…

Since 1922, interrupted only by World War II, American college debators have exchanged visits and demonstration tours with their foreign counterparts, primarily from Great Britain but gradually expanded to include other areas of the world. This report, prepared by the Committee on International Discussion and Debate of the Speech Communication…

The author takes the position that communication is an essential, but often overlooked component of law and justice; furthermore, some of the current problems in the area of law and justice are basically communication problems. The author traces the early development of communication and law as closely related disciplines, with emphasis on the…

There are three senses in which all persuasion is political: (1) persuasion seeks to restructure the organization of power; (2) persuasion itself is an exercise of power; and (3) all morally significant human conduct includes political dimensions. The comprehension of political events in dramatic terms is the burden of the author's thesis in this…

The purpose of this book is to define characteristics of rhetorical discourse, explain man's capacity to influence and be influenced, and describe the purposes and processes of rhetorical criticism. Representative speech texts, with critiques, are included on the following contemporary topics: withdrawal from Vietnam (Richard M. Nixon);…

Over the last 20 years, a successful election campaign has come to depend in large part on successful use of the broadcast media. As a result, media experts are part of most politicians' teams, and their strategies help determine the results of the election. Usually, themes or "images" are more important than issues. The techniques of mass…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is an information-gathering project that surveys the educational attainments of 9 year olds, 13 year olds, 17 year olds, and adults (ages 26 to 35) in ten learning areas, one of which is writing. This report focuses on persuasive and explanatory letter writing, representing two basic aims of…

The creative, purposeful departures from standard English used by advertisers are a worthwhile object of study in English classes. (JH)

Describes a method of re-directing the components of external rhetorical analysis to the intrinsic boundaries of a play and discusses the benefits of such a method as a critical tool in the oral interpretation of dramatic literature. (MH)

Much difficulty in teaching composition stems from the erroneous assumption that thought precedes writing. (JH)

Based on an earlier article that criticized the "Kodaly Method," this rebuttal is primarily addressed to those readers who may not have made up their minds about the value of the Kodaly concept. Discussed are the untruths and half-truths seen by the author, as well as misuses of the "method." (Author/RK)

Outlines a model United Nations simulation which is applicable for high school or college use. It is played under the rules of an organization called the Model United Nations of the Far West, an association of 100 colleges in the western U.S. The simulation involves weekly mock sessions. (AV)