Written Communication Jul 1988

Ethos Versus Persona: Self-Representation in Written Discourse

ROGER D. CHERRY

Abstract

This essay examines self-portrayal in fictional and nonfictional written discourse. The essay focuses on various treatments of self-representation in rhetorical and literary critical theory in an effort to overcome the conceptual and terminological confusion that has arisen across time and disciplinary specialties in the discussion of self-portrayal. The essay argues that two common terms for describing self-representation—ethos and persona— are often conflated but that there are good historical and conceptual grounds for maintaining a distinction between them. Such a distinction refines our critical vocabulary for analyzing the multidimensional nature of self-representation in writing.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
1988-07-01
DOI
10.1177/0741088388005003001
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Topics
rhetorical criticism discourse analysis argument
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (13)

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  5. GALINDO et al. (1995)
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  6. KAUFER et al. (1994)
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  7. Witte et al. (1994)
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  8. Harris (1993)
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