Rhetoric Review Jul 2019

Memorializing Violence: Identity, Temporality, and the “Vulnerability” of a Mythical Figure in State Graffiti

Adedoyin Ogunfeyimi

Abstract

This essay analyzes the grammar of military graffiti in Nigeria to uncover the mindless posture with which the military deploys it to assert their power, identity, and temporal orientations in ways that not only subvert and shame a minority group and its belief systems, but also expose the brutal and liminal conditions of the state agents. This analysis extends studies of state graffiti by framing the multifold grammatical components as rhetorical acts of domination.

Journal
Rhetoric Review
Published
2019-07-03
DOI
10.1080/07350198.2019.1618132
CompPile
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism grammar and mechanics
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