Rhetoric Society Quarterly Sep 2006

Habermas, Systematically Distorted Communication, and the Public Sphere

Alan G. Gross University of Minnesota

Abstract

The work of the German political philosopher, Jürgen Habermas, provides the framework for the analysis of the formation of national identities in the public sphere, and their erosion by means of systematically distorted communication. The object of this article is an exhibit that traveled throughout Germany, one designed to undermine a myth concerning Germany's “unmasterable” past, the legacy of its brutal conduct in World War Two. The history of the exhibit and its reception trace a path from courageous confrontation to prudent retreat in the face of systematically distorted communication. The article concludes by reflecting on the rhetorical significance of systematically distorted communication.

Journal
Rhetoric Society Quarterly
Published
2006-09-01
DOI
10.1080/02773940500511603
CompPile
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism public rhetoric
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (0)

No articles in this index cite this work.

References (42)

  1. Aristotle (1991)
    Aristotle on Rhetoric: A Theory of Civic Discourse
  2. Bartov Omer (1986)
    The Eastern Front, 1941–45: German Troops and the Barbarisation of Warfare
     ↗
  3. Bartov Omer
    Bericht der Kommission zur Überprüfung der Ausstellung “Vernichtungskreig. Verbrechen der…
  4. (1998)
    Besucher Einer Ausstellung: Die Ausstellung “Vernichtungskrieg. Verbrechen der Wehrmacht …
  5. Boll Bernd (1999)
    Eine Ausstellung und Ihre Folgen. Zur Rezeption der Ausstellung “Vernichtungskrieg. Verbr…
Show all 42 →
  1. Bopp Petra (1999)
    Eine Ausstellung und Ihre Folgen. Zur Rezeption der Ausstellung “Vernichtungskrieg. Verbr…
  2. Dewey John (1980)
    The Public and Its Problems
  3. McDermott John J. (1981)
    The Philosophy of John Dewey
  4. Eine Ausstellung und Ihre Folgen. Zur Rezeption der Ausstellung “Vernichtungskrieg. Verbrechen der Wehrmacht …
  5. Gaventa John (1999)
    Citizen Competence and Democratic Institutions
  6. Goldhagen Daniel Jonah (1997)
    Hitler's Willing Executioners: Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust
  7. (2005)
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  8. Habermas Jürgen (1997)
    A Berlin Republic: Writings on Germany
  9. (1998)
    Between Facts and Norms: Contributions to a Discourse Theory of Law and Democracy
  10. (1971)
    Knowledge and Human Interests
  11. (1996)
    The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere: An Inquiry into a Category of Bourgeo…
  12. (1987)
    Lifeworld and System: A Critique of Functionalist Reason
  13. Heer Hannes (1995)
    Vernchtungskrieg: Verbrechen der Wehrmacht, 1941–1944
  14. Herr Michael (1991)
    Dispatches
  15. Hilberg Raul (1985)
    The Destruction of the European Jews
  16. Klemperer Victor (2002)
    The Language of the Third Reich
  17. Latzel Klaus (1995)
    Vernichtungskrieg: Verbrechen der Wehrmacht 1941–1944
  18. Levin Judith (1998)
    Yad Vashem Studies XXVI
  19. Mommsen Hans (1970)
    The German Resistance to Hitler
  20. Musial Bogdan (1999)
    Vierteljahrshefte für Zeitgeschichte
  21. Nietzsche Friederich (1983)
    Untimely Meditations
  22. Overmans Rüdiger (1999)
    Deutsche Militärische Verluste im Zweiten Weltkreig
  23. Perelman Ch. (1969)
    The New Rhetoric: A Treatise on Argumentation
  24. Popkin Samuel L. (1999)
    Citizen Competence and Democratic Institutions
  25. Röhr Werner
    Junge Welt
  26. Rossino Alexander B. (1999)
    10.1080/03087298.1999.10443339
    History of Photography  ↗
  27. Schmidt-Neuhaus Dieter (1999)
    Geschichte in Wissenschaft und Unterricht
  28. Schön Donald A. (1993)
    Metaphor and Thought.
     ↗
  29. Shandley Robert R. (1998)
    Unwilling Germans? The Goldhagen Debate
  30. Sledge E. B. (1981)
    With the Old Breed at Peleliu and Okinawa
  31. Thiele Hans-Günther (1997)
    Die Wehrmachtsasstellung: Dokumente einer Kontroverse
  32. Thompson John B. (1982)
    Habermas: The Critical Debates
     ↗
  33. Ullrich Volker
    Die Zeit
  34. Ungvàry Kriztiàn (1999)
    Geschichte in Wissenschaft und Unterricht
  35. (2001)
    Verbrechen der Wehrmacht: Dimensionen des Vernichtungskrieges 1941–1944
  36. (1996)
    Vernichtungskreig: Verbrechen der Wehrmacht: 1941 bis 1944
  37. “Wehrmacht revisited.”FAZDecember 6, 2001. 2 June 2004,http://www.zitty.de/pubs/akuell/pageviewer.asp?TextID=7782 .
CrossRef global citation count: 1 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Reflections: A Journal of Community-Engaged Writing and Rhetoric Feb 2026
    Voices from Rock Bottom: Queering Addiction Recovery Rhetoric & Community Literacy ↗
    Danielle Bacibianco
    rhetorical criticism archival research multimodality literacy studies gender and writing public rhetoric community literacy
  2. Res Rhetorica Jan 2026
    Politicians’ privacy management in social media as a tool for shaping ethos ↗
    Anna M. Kiełbiewska
    rhetorical criticism argument social media public rhetoric
  3. Res Rhetorica Oct 2025
    Fractured borders and politics of resistance: Post-9/11 through Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush (2022) ↗
    BETÜL ATEŞCİ KOÇAK
    rhetorical criticism discourse analysis public rhetoric
  4. Res Rhetorica Oct 2025
    Walls, borders, and the rhetoric of fear: A longitudinal study of Trump’s campaign addresses ↗
    Alma Vančura
    rhetorical criticism discourse analysis empirical research public rhetoric
  5. Res Rhetorica Oct 2025
    Recenzja/Review: Rebecca Townsend. ed. 2023. Beyond Cold War: Presidential Rhetoric in Central and Eastern Europe. New York: Peter Lang Publishing Group ↗
    Konrad Kiljan
    rhetorical criticism public rhetoric book reviews