Ideological Criticism

Rhetorical Criticism Blog #2

Ideological Criticism

pg. 239-297

1. "An ideology is a pattern of belief that determines a group's interpretations of some aspects of the world. It is a system of beliefs that reflects a group's 'fundamental social, economic, political or cultural interests.' It represents 'who we are, what we stand for, what our values are, and what our relationships are with other groups' -- particularly groups that oppose what we stand for, threaten our interests, and prevent us from accessing resources important to us."
2. "The primary components of an ideology are evaluative beliefs--beliefs about which there are possible alternative judgments."

Neo-Aristotelian Criticism

Rhetorical Criticism Blog # 1

Neo-Aristotelian Criticism

pg. 21-60

1. Sonja Foss, the writer of Rhetorical Criticism: Exploration and Practice, defines neo--Aristotelian criticism as "the first formal methods of rhetorical criticism developed in the communication field" which used the classical 5 canons of rhetoric (see answer to question #3) as units of analysis.
2. The three basic steps of analyzing the artifact are:
• "Reconstructing the context in which the artifact occurred"
• "Applying the five canons to the artifact"
• "Assessing the impact of the artifact on the audience"
3. The five canons of rhetoric are:
• "Invention": creating ideas/materials for the speech
• "Organization": arranging those ideas in the speech
• "Style": language used in the speech
• "Memory": mastery and familiarity of the subject matter
• "Delivery": vocals and gestures during the speech