Rhetoric Society Quarterly Jun 2005

Contradicting and complicating feminization of rhetoric narratives: Mary Yost and argument from a sociological perspective

Suzanne Bordelon San Diego State University

Abstract

Abstract This article adds to the growing body of feminist scholarship critiquing Robert J. Connors’ assertion that the entrance of women into higher education in the nineteenth century contributed to the decline of oratory and debate. It contradicts and complicates Connors’ claim by highlighting the efforts of Mary Yost, who taught English at Vassar College during the first two decades of the twentieth century. Yost promoted debate both in the classroom and in extracurricular activities, and she crafted a feminist theory of argument quite distinct from the traditional type of argument that Connors argues was displaced after women entered higher education.

Journal
Rhetoric Society Quarterly
Published
2005-06-01
DOI
10.1080/02773940509391317
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism argument gender and writing public rhetoric
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (2)

  1. Bordelon (2012)
    “Resolved That the Mind of Woman Is Not Inferior to That of Man”: Women's Orato…
    Advances in the History of Rhetoric
  2. Tasker et al. (2008)
    Feminist Research Methodologies in Historic Rhetoric and Composition: An Overvi…
    Rhetoric Review

References (57) · 3 in this index

  1. Scott. 1909. “Rhetoric Rediviva”. originally delivered as a presentation at the Modern Language Association m…
  2. Angell J.R. (1903)
    The Relation of Structural and Functional Psychology to Philosophy
     ↗
  3. Baldwin J.M. (1911)
    The Individual and Society
  4. Cooley C.H. (1912)
    Human Nature and Social Order
  5. Davis M.M. (1909)
    Psychological Interpretations of Society
Show all 57 →
  1. 10.1037/10903-000
     ↗
  2. Ellwood C.A. (1915)
    Sociology in Its Psychological Aspects
  3. Gumplowicz L. (1899)
    The Outlines of Sociology
  4. James W. (1893)
    The Principles of Psychology
  5. Ladd G.T. (1911)
    Elements of Physiological Psychology
  6. Pillsbury W.B. (1908)
    Attention
  7. Ross E.A. (1908)
    Social Psychology
  8. Bacon Harold M.
    “Memorial Resolution Mary Yost 1881–1954”
    Mary Yost Biographical File
  9. Baker George Pierce (1895)
    The Principles of Argumentation
  10. _____. 1895.The Principles of Argumentation Preface, v–viii. Boston: Ginn.
  11. Brandeis Louis D. (1914)
    Business—A Profession
  12. _____ (1900)
    10.2307/2917917
    Modern Language Notes  ↗
  13. 10.2307/358639
     ↗
  14. Cohen Herman (1994)
    The History of Speech Communication: The Emergence of a Discipline, 1914–1945
  15. Cohen Marshall J. (1982)
    Charles Horton Cooley and the Social Self in American Thought
  16. Connors Robert J. (1999)
    Journal of Advanced Composition
  17. _____ (1997)
    Composition‐Rhetoric: Backgrounds, Theory, and Pedagogy
  18. _____ (1995)
    Feminine Principles and Women's Experience in American Composition and Rhetoric
  19. Connors Robert J. (1984)
    Essays on Classical Rhetoric and Modern Discourse
  20. Conway Kathryn M. (1995)
    Reclaiming Rhetorica: Women in the Rhetorical Tradition
     ↗
  21. Crowley Sharon (1998)
    Rhetoric Review
  22. Daniels Elizabeth A. (1994)
    Bridges to the World: Henry Noble MacCracken and Vassar College
  23. 1954. “Doctor Mary Yost, Former Stanford Dean of Women, Is Claimed by Stroke”.Stanford Daily, 5 March N. pag.…
  24. Donawerth Jane (2002)
    Rhetorical Theory by Women Before 1900: An Anthology
  25. (1954)
    Daily Palo Alto Times
  26. (1946)
    Stanford Alumni Review
  27. Flynn Elizabeth A. (2002)
    Feminism, Beyond Modernism
  28. 10.1080/03637759509376345
     ↗
  29. Gage, John T. “An Adequate Epistemology for Composition: Classical and Modern Perspectives”. Edited by: Conno…
  30. 10.1016/S0148-0685(79)91809-8
     ↗
  31. Howton, Elizabeth. 1991. “The ‘Lasuens’: Academic Women at Stanford, 1920–1946”. Stanford University. Senior …
  32. James William (1979)
    The Will to Believe: And Other Essays in Popular Philosophy 1897
  33. (1946)
    Stanford Alumni Review
  34. Lunsford, Andrea A. and Ede, Lisa S. “On Distinctions between Classical and Modern Rhetoric”. Edited by: Conn…
  35. Mastrangelo (1999)
    Learning from the past: Rhetoric, composition, and debate at Mount Holyoke College
    Rhetoric Review
  36. Mountford Roxanne (1999)
    Journal of Advanced Composition
  37. _____ (1999)
    Journal of Advanced Composition
  38. Ricker (2004)
    "Ars Stripped of Praxis": Robert J. Connors on Coeducation and the Demise of Ag…
    Rhetoric Review
  39. Ridener Larry R. (2004)
    Dead Sociologists' Society at Pfeiffer University
  40. Ritchie Joy (2001)
    Available Means: An Anthology of Women's Rhetoric(s)
     ↗
  41. Scott Fred Newton (1980)
    College Composition and Communication
  42. (1912)
    Poughkeepsie Daily Eagle
  43. Yost Mary
    Transcript of Grade Report
  44. (1923)
    University of Michigan Catalogue of Graduates, Non‐Graduates, Officers, and Members of th…
  45. Walker (1994)
    The Body of Persuasion: A Theory of the Enthymeme
    College English
  46. Wylie, Laura Johnson. 1911. “Report of the Department of English”. Poughkeepsie, NY: Vassar College Library. …
  47. Yost Mary (1917)
    Quarterly Journal of Public Speaking
  48. _____. 1917. “The Functional Aspect of Argument as Seen in a Collection of Business Letters”. University of M…
  49. _____ (1916)
    Vassar Quarterly
  50. _____ (1921)
    Stanford Illustrated Review
  51. _____ (1924)
    Alumnae Survey
    University of Michigan Alumnae Association, Box 109
  52. 10.1080/00335631909360744
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 2 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Philosophy & Rhetoric Apr 2025
    Introduction: On the Desirability of Speaking to Others ↗
    Nirvana Tanoukhi; Nicholas Dunn
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism discourse analysis argument social media race and writing gender and writing disability studies public rhetoric literary studies editorial matter
  2. Rhetoric & Public Affairs Dec 2024
    American Kairos: Washington National Cathedral and the New Civil Religion ↗
    Randall Fowler
    rhetorical criticism discourse analysis argument archival research race and writing gender and writing public rhetoric body and rhetoric place and space editorial matter
  3. Philosophy & Rhetoric Sep 2024
    Where’s the Rhetoric? Imagining a Unified Field ↗
    Joshua Hanan
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism composition theory genre theory discourse analysis cultural rhetorics argument qualitative research quantitative research digital rhetoric social media grammar and mechanics gender and writing disability studies public rhetoric affect and writing body and rhetoric editorial matter
  4. Rhetoric & Public Affairs Jun 2024
    Rhetorical Leadership ↗
    Catherine L. Langford
    rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis feminist rhetorics cultural rhetorics decolonial rhetorics graduate education argument empirical research qualitative research race and writing gender and writing disability studies public rhetoric affect and writing body and rhetoric editorial matter
  5. Rhetoric & Public Affairs Mar 2024
    Literacy in a Long Blues Note: Black Women's Literature and Music in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries ↗
    Cecilia Cerja
    rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis argument literacy studies race and writing gender and writing public rhetoric literary studies