Written Communication Jul 1992

The Case for Oral Evidence in Composition Historiography

GERALD NELMS

Abstract

The almost exclusive reliance on evidence developed from documentary analyses, specifically analyses of textbooks, in composition historiography has resulted in an agonistic, heroes-and-villains image of the history of writing instruction, whereby modern composition scholars have defined themselves in terms of their opposition to what has come to be called “current-traditional rhetoric.” This article promotes the use of oral evidence in composition historiography to guard against overgeneralization and simplistic reduction of composition history to binary oppositions. Oral interviews also can serve as a way of collecting information that would otherwise be lost, of exploring the thoughts, motivations, feelings, and values of informants, and of giving voice to those marginalized politically, socially, and professionally. This article also defends oral data against positivistic attacks on its reliability as evidence and argues that the evidentiary value of any piece of historical data depends not on some abstract ranking of different kinds of evidence but on the historian's understanding of the rhetorical context informing the production of that data.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
1992-07-01
DOI
10.1177/0741088392009003002
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism composition theory writing pedagogy archival research
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (4)

  1. Duffy (2007)
    Recalling the Letter: The Uses of Oral Testimony in Historical Studies of Literacy
    Written Communication
  2. Strain (2000)
    Local histories, rhetorical negotiations: The development of doctoral programs …
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  3. Nelms (1994)
    Reassessing Janet Emig'sthe composing processes of twelfth graders:An historica…
    Rhetoric Review
  4. Nelms et al. (1994)
    The revival of classical rhetoric for modern composition studies: A survey
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly

References (82) · 7 in this index

  1. Aristotle
    The rhetoric and the poetics of Aristotle
  2. Baddeley, A.
    The recall method in social surveys
    Studies in Education, new series
  3. Bazerman, C.
    The informed writer: Using sources in the disciplines
  4. 10.2307/377329
     ↗
  5. Berlin, J. A.
    Writing instruction in nineteenth-century American colleges
Show all 82 →
  1. Berlin, J. A.
    Rhetoric and reality: Writing instruction in American colleges, 1900-1985
  2. Berlin, J. A. (1987)
    Revisionary history: The dialectical method
    PRE/TEXT
  3. 10.2307/377477
     ↗
  4. Boswell, J.
    Journal of a tour to the Hebrides with Samuel Johnson, LL.D
  5. Breisach, E.
    Historiography: Ancient, medieval, and modern
  6. Briggs, L. R.
    To college teachers of English composition
  7. Brown, R. W.
    Dean Briggs
  8. Cherry, R. (1988)
    [Rev. of The making of knowledge in composition: Portrait of an emerging field]
    Quarterly of the National Writing Project in the Center for the Study of Writing
  9. Cicero
    De inventione; De optimo genere; Oratorum topica
  10. 10.2307/356607
     ↗
  11. Connors et al. (1986)
    Writing Instruction in Nineteenth-Century American Colleges
    College Composition and Communication
  12. 10.2307/357516
     ↗
  13. Connors (1990)
    Overwork/underpay: Labor and status of composition teachers since 1880
    Rhetoric Review
  14. Connors, R. J.
    An introduction to composition studies
  15. Crowley (1985)
    The evolution of invention in current‐traditional rhetoric: 1850–1970
    Rhetoric Review
  16. Crowley, S.
    The methodical memory: Invention in current-traditional rhetoric
  17. Cutler, W.
    Historical Methods NewsletterOral history: An interdisciplinary anthology
  18. 10.2307/354995
     ↗
  19. Dunaway, D. K.
    Oral history: An interdisciplinary anthology
  20. Ede, L.
    Singular texts/plural authors: Perspectives on collaborative writing
  21. Emig, J.
    The composing process of twelfth graders
  22. Faris, D. E. (1980)
    Narrative form and oral history: Some problems and possibilities
    International Journal of Oral History
  23. Fogarty, D.
    Roots for a new rhetoric
  24. Gere, A. R.
    Writing groups: History, theory, and implications
  25. Gittens, D.
    The recall method in social surveys
    Studies in Education, new series
  26. Gough, R.
    Human nature displayed in the history of Myddle
  27. Grele, R. J.
    Envelopes of sound: The art of oral history
  28. 10.2307/357846
     ↗
  29. Hay, C. (1981)
    The pangs of the past
    Oral History
  30. Health, S. B.
    Children in and out of school: Ethnography and education
  31. Hill, A. S.
    Scribners Magazine
  32. Hill, A. S.
    Our English
  33. Hill, A. S.
    Principles of rhetoric, and their application
  34. 10.1080/01463377409369125
     ↗
  35. D. K. Dunaway
    Oral history: An interdisciplinary anthology
  36. Hoopes, J.
    Oral history: An introduction for students
  37. Kitzhaber, A. R.
    Rhetoric in American colleges, 1850-1900
  38. Kubie, L. S.
    Behavioral science frontiers in education
  39. Kuhn, T. S.
    The structure of scientific revolutions
  40. LeFevre, K. B.
    Invention as a social act
  41. 10.1086/434775
     ↗
  42. Lichtman, A. J.
    Historians and the living past: The theory and practice of historical study
  43. Lummis, T. (1981)
    Structure and validity in oral evidence
    International Journal of Oral History
  44. 10.2307/357884
     ↗
  45. Lunsford, A.
    Singular texts/plural authors: Perspectives on collaborative writing
  46. Menninger, R.
    Oral History Review
  47. Michelet, J.
    Histoire de la révolution Française
  48. Miller, S. (1982)
    Is there a text in this class?
    Freshman English News
  49. Miller, S.
    Textual carnivals: The politics of composition
  50. Mills (1953)
    Writing as Process
    College English
  51. Mishler, E. G.
    Research interviewing: Context and narrative
  52. Montell, L.
    The saga of Coe Ridge: A study in oral history
  53. Moss, L.
    The recall method in social surveys
    Studies in Education, new series
  54. 10.17723/aarc.40.4.y10q27j415278520
     ↗
  55. Neel, J.
    Plato, Derrida, and writing
  56. Nelms, R. G.
    The St. Martin's handbook: Annotated instructor's edition
  57. Nelms R. G. (1990). A case history approach to composition studies: Edward P. J. Corbett and Janet Emig. Unpu…
  58. 10.1093/ohr/6.1.45
     ↗
  59. D. K. Dunaway
    Oral history: An interdisciplinary anthology
  60. Nevins, A.
    The gateway to history
  61. North, S. M.
    The making of knowledge in composition: Portrait of an emerging field
  62. 10.1093/ohr/9.1.27
     ↗
  63. D. K. Dunaway
    Oral history: An interdisciplinary anthology
  64. Quintilian
    Institutio oratoria
  65. Shaw, J. G.
    History and traditions of Darwen and its people
  66. 10.4324/9780203142165
     ↗
  67. 10.2307/357306
     ↗
  68. Stewart (1985)
    Some history lessons for composition teachers
    Rhetoric Review
  69. G. Tate
    The writing teachers' sourcebook
  70. 10.17723/aarc.28.1.dk4312n1q9365x72
     ↗
  71. Thompson, P.
    The voice of the past: Oral history
  72. Town K. (1988). The process approach: Early versions in the English Journal 1912-1960. Unpublished thesis The…
  73. White, H.
    Tropics of discourse: Essays in cultural criticism
  74. Witte (1983)
    Topical Structure and Revision: An Exploratory Study
    College Composition and Communication
  75. WOODS (1985)
    The Reform Tradition in Nineteenth-Century Composition Teaching
    Written Communication
  76. Wozniak, J. M.
    English composition in eastern colleges, 1850-1940
  77. Young, R.
    Research in composing: Points of departure
CrossRef global citation count: 6 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Philosophy & Rhetoric Mar 2021
    Rhetoric as a Posthuman Practice ↗
    Jason Kalin; Diane Keeling
    classical rhetoric modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism composition theory writing pedagogy argument archival research multimodality editorial matter
  2. Rhetoric Review Jul 2004
    "Ars Stripped of Praxis": Robert J. Connors on Coeducation and the Demise of Agonistic Rhetoric ↗
    Lisa Reid Ricker
    rhetorical criticism composition theory writing pedagogy archival research book reviews
  3. Rhetoric Society Quarterly Jun 1997
    Researching the body: An annotated bibliography for rhetoric ↗
    Randi Patterson; Gail Corning
    classical rhetoric modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism composition theory discourse analysis feminist rhetorics writing pedagogy argument archival research gender and writing public rhetoric
  4. Pedagogy Oct 2025
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory cultural rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy advanced composition creative writing writing across the curriculum graduate education two-year college service learning teacher development technical communication professional writing labor and working conditions archival research multimodality artificial intelligence literacy studies race and writing gender and writing disability studies literary studies editorial matter
  5. The Peer Review Sep 2025
    Moving Against the Grain: Combining Writing Center Theory and In-House Editing Services to Create a Graduate Writing Center ↗
    Brian Harrell; Brook Wyers; Craig Theissen
    rhetorical criticism composition theory writing pedagogy graduate education teacher development collaborative writing writing centers peer tutoring professional writing labor and working conditions online writing instruction multilingual writers grammar and mechanics editorial matter