Rhetoric Society Quarterly Aug 2010

Citational Epideixis and a “Thinking of Community”: The Case of the Minuteman Project

E. Johanna Hartelius Northern Illinois University ; Jennifer Asenas

Abstract

That a single author creates a rhetorical artifact is fundamental to traditional genre theory. This article draws on posthumanist notions of linguistic “citationality” in order to divest the epideictic rhetoric of the Minuteman Project of the fantasy of the original author. We argue that, in epideictic engagements, language is reinvigorated; it recurs and circulates infinitely, accumulating meaning in each new instantiation. Using a text with considerable ethical complexity, we examine three themes of particular interest to posthumanism: accountability/responsibility, the potential for (political) resistance, and community. Epideictic discourses tell us not only who to be, but how to be; from a posthumanist point of view, those constructs, we claim, are enfoldments of the exterior. By positing citationality as key dimensions of genre, and following the theoretical works of Jean-Luc Nancy and Giorgio Agamben, we explicate the significance of subjectivity as a rhetorical outcome of the social.

Journal
Rhetoric Society Quarterly
Published
2010-08-31
DOI
10.1080/02773945.2010.499862
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
classical rhetoric rhetorical criticism genre theory
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (3)

  1. Ehrenfeld (2020)
    “Sharing a World with Others”: Rhetoric’s Ecological Turn and the Transformatio…
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  2. Pezzullo et al. (2018)
    Resistance: Taking a Stand, Struggling to Matter
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  3. Bokser (2012)
    Reading and Writing Sor Juana's Arch: Rhetorics of Belonging,CriolloIdentity, a…
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly

References (66) · 9 in this index

  1. Agamben Giorgio. (1993)
    The Coming Community
  2. Austin J. L. (1962)
    How to Do Things With Words
  3. Ayim (1998)
    Just How Correct is Political Correctness? A Critique of the Opposition's Arguments
    Argumentation
  4. Badmington Neil, ed. (2000)
    Posthumanism
     ↗
  5. Beale Walter H. (1978)
    Philosophy and Rhetoric
Show all 66 →
  1. Bevir Mark (2007)
    Histories of Postmodernism
  2. 10.1080/00335639809384215
     ↗
  3. (1992)
    Philosophy and Rhetoric
  4. (1989)
    Philosophy and Rhetoric
  5. Bineham Jeffery L. (1995)
    Philosophy and Rhetoric
  6. Bowers John W. (1971)
    The Rhetoric of Agitation and Control
  7. Bowers John W. (1971)
    The Rhetoric of Agitation and Control
  8. Burke Kenneth. (1984)
    Attitudes Toward History
     ↗
  9. (1984)
    Permanence and Change
  10. (1973)
    Philosophy of Literary Form
  11. Butler Judith. (1993)
    Bodies That Matter
  12. (1997)
    Excitable Speech: A Politics of the Performative
  13. Campbell Karlyn Kohrs (1978)
    Form and Genre
  14. 10.1080/00335636109382490
     ↗
  15. Chomsky Noam (2006)
    The Chomsky-Foucault Debate on Human Nature
  16. 10.1080/01463378509369608
     ↗
  17. Consigny (1992)
    The styles of Gorgias
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  18. Davis D. Diane (1999)
    Journal of Composition Theory
  19. Davis (2001)
    Finitude's Clamor; Or, Notes toward a Communitarian Literacy
    College Composition and Communication
  20. Dean Jodi. (2006)
    Žižek's Politics
  21. Derrida Jacques. (1972)
    Limited Inc
  22. Duffy Bernard K. (1983)
    Philosophy and Rhetoric
  23. 10.1525/ca.2001.20.1.35
     ↗
  24. Edbauer (2005)
    Unframing models of public distribution: From rhetorical situation to rhetorica…
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  25. Evans Dylan. (1993)
    Norms of Rhetorical Culture
  26. Farrell Thomas B. (1993)
    Norms of Rhetorical Culture
     ↗
  27. 10.1080/14797580500252555
     ↗
  28. Gilchrist Jim. (2006)
    Minutemen: The Battle to Secure America's Borders
  29. Eli Peter (2007)
    Histories of Postmodernism
  30. 10.1080/00335630209384390
     ↗
  31. 10.1080/00335630600709406
     ↗
  32. 10.1111/j.1468-2885.2009.01349.x
     ↗
  33. Halliwell Martin (2003)
    Critical Humanisms: Humanist/Anti-Humanist Dialogues
     ↗
  34. Hargis Jill. (2007)
    Histories of Postmodernism
  35. 10.1080/00335630802210369
     ↗
  36. 10.1016/S0378-2166(01)00058-3
     ↗
  37. Hauser (1999)
    Aristotle on epideictic: The formation of public morality
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  38. Heidegger Martin. (1962)
    Being and Time
  39. Krell David Farrell (1993)
    Basic Writings
  40. (1971)
    On the Way to Language
  41. 10.1086/463699
     ↗
  42. 10.1080/14797580500252571
     ↗
  43. 10.1080/00335638209383600
     ↗
  44. Kraye Jill (2000)
    Humanism and Early Modern Philosophy
  45. Lundberg et al. (2005)
    “Ouija board, are there any communications?” Agency, ontotheology, and the deat…
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  46. 10.2307/1772278
     ↗
  47. 10.1353/rap.2004.0013
     ↗
  48. Nancy Jean-Luc. (1991)
    Community at Loose Ends
  49. Noonan Jeff. (2003)
    Critical Humanism and the Politics of Difference
     ↗
  50. Oravec Christine. (1976)
    Philosophy and Rhetoric
  51. Palczewski Catherine Helen (2005)
    10.1080/00028533.2005.11821624
    Argumentation and Advocacy  ↗
  52. 10.1080/00335638709383811
     ↗
  53. Ana Santa (2002)
    Brown Tide Rising: Metaphors of Latinos in Contemporary American Public Discourse
     ↗
  54. Smith et al. (2003)
    Rhetorics of unity and disunity: The Worcester firefighters memorial service
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  55. Sullivan Dale L. (1993)
    Philosophy and Rhetoric
  56. Vickers Brian. (2000)
    Humanism and Early Modern Philosophy
  57. Villadsen (2008)
    Speaking on Behalf of Others: Rhetorical Agency and Epideictic Functions in Off…
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  58. 10.1080/00335630600687107
     ↗
  59. Walker (1989)
    Aristotle's Lyric: Re-Imagining the Rhetoric of Epideictic Song
    College English
  60. Wolin Richard. (2007)
    Histories of Postmodernism
  61. Žižek Slavoj. (2002)
    For They Know Not What They Do: Enjoyment as a Political Factor.
CrossRef global citation count: 4 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Res Rhetorica Jan 2026
    Ethos – between vir bonus and VIA: Virtue ethics in contemporary rhetorical education ↗
    Agnieszka Budzyńska-Daca
    classical rhetoric modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory argument
  2. Philosophy & Rhetoric Oct 2025
    The Intellectual and Cultural Origins of Chaïm Perelman and Lucie Olbrechts-Tyteca’s New Rhetoric Project: Commentaries on and Translations of Seven Foundational Articles, 1933–1958 ↗
    Christopher W. Tindale
    classical rhetoric modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis revision argument collaborative writing editorial matter
  3. Res Rhetorica Oct 2024
    Rhetoric and Oratory in New Spain and the Nineteenth Century in Mexico ↗
    Gerardo Ramirez Vidal
    classical rhetoric rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis teacher development public rhetoric
  4. Rhetorica Sep 2024
    A Short Foreword ↗
    Lorenzo Miletti; Caroline Petit
    classical rhetoric rhetorical criticism genre theory editorial matter
  5. Philosophy & Rhetoric Jul 2023
    Being-Moved: Rhetoric as the Art of Listening ↗
    Nathaniel A. Rivers
    classical rhetoric modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory writing pedagogy teacher development argument public rhetoric book reviews