While little attention has been given in historiography to the language of historical narrative, and the role language plays in portraying history, the discipline of linguistics, and particularly the subdisciplines of discourse analysis and functional linguistics, have given increasing attention to the discourse of history. Recently, a group of…

Although academic debate is not viewed highly by many in the critical thinking movement, most of the attacks are based on a misperception of the activity, while others target faults that are not inherent to the activity. Contrary to the claim that debaters seek only to win, this desire is regulated by rules of evidence, time limits, rules…

These facilitator's skill packets contain nine individual packets on skill alternatives to aggression: (1) asking permission; (2) sharing something; (3) helping others; (4) negotiating; (5) using self-control; (6) standing up for one's rights; (7) responding to teasing; (8) avoiding trouble with others; and (9) keeping out of fights. Each packet…

Introducing students to the assumptions, values, and complexity involved in implicit and explicit agreements between individuals, this book presents 34 situations which students are asked to examine and then draw conclusions and make decisions based on the information given. The situations presented in the book include agreements, understandings,…

As an extension of African-Americans' rich language and musical heritage and abilities, rap music has some value in the educational setting. Rap music started as a dance fad beginning in the mid-1970s among Blacks and Hispanics in New York's outer boroughs. It is another generational brand of Black language and musical usage and an extension of…

Focusing on the federal government's efforts to educate the public to the dangers of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), a study examined "America Responds to AIDS" public service announcements (PSA's) through a traditional rhetorical analysis (PSA characters, plot, pace, tone, and message design). Forty-four English-language…

Drawing on the writings of Jean Piaget, Paulo Freire, Yoneji Masuda, John Naisbitt, and others, this paper examines the purposes of education and posits a model for developing strong sense critical thinking (SSCT) skills among elementary school students. Part I examines the purpose of education, while Part II discusses SSCT, defined as the ability…

Faced with a smaller pool of qualified high school graduates, American colleges and universities have been forced to adopt aggressive marketing and recruitment processes. One of the most often applied communication techniques is the production and distribution of image or recruitment videotapes, or video brochures. A study applied a content…

In the years since the Anita Hill/Clarence Thomas Senate Confirmation hearings, it is apparent that this event has had some far-reaching consequences. Although the immediate outcome of the Senate hearings was not positive for Professor Hill, the effect of her testimony seems to have been to encourage more discussion of sexual harassment. The…

Planbox escalation is a linguistic method of analyzing narrative arguments. This persuasive procedure consists of 12 strategies: (1) begin with information that all sides can agree on; (2) prepare to respond by rejecting outright, questioning, ignoring or replacing the audience's opinions; (3) make the subject as attractive as possible; (4)…

The tradition that promoted "sophia" instead of "philosophia,""oratio" instead of "ratio," and promoted the pursuit of wise decision making based on character has been replaced by a pedagogy that focuses on decision making independent of the role of virtue in making minds up. In courses in argumentation,…

The recent success of the United States antismoking movement has produced a marked decline in the U.S. smoking population. A study employed Jurgen Habermas' communicative competency theory to examine United States smoking controversy discourse and identify the most successful appeals of the antismoking movement. Analysis revealed that primary…

The appellate argument of Paul Wilson, who represented the Topeka, Kansas, school board in the 1952 Supreme Court case, "Brown v. Board of Education," presents an excellent example of the influence of personal and legal ethics on rhetorical choices. A reluctant advocate of racially segregated education, a policy the Topeka Board of…

To identify the means by which scientific discourse achieves any degree of success in representing nature, an examination was made of Arthur H. Compton's and Alfred W. Simon's paper, "Measurements of Beta-Rays Associated with Scattered X-Rays," which originally appeared in 1925. Analysis reveals that the rhetorical choices of Compton,…

The four papers in this compilation were drawn from a conference designed to encourage scholars to continue the rhetorical tradition. The first paper, by Robert S. Cathcart, was the opening address of the conference and discusses the "technologization" of rhetoric. Specifically, the paper discusses the application of rhetorical analysis…