Abstract

Recent discussions of metaphor illuminate its function as a paradigm-building trope with significant rhetorical and epistemological power. Historical and current discourse within biological science provide a complex and poignant example of metaphor's influence: Throughout much of the twentieth century, the field operated under a deterministic assumption that DNA is the "genetic code." Though this reductionist association still shapes biological research, postgenomic discoveries are now reconceiving the connection between DNA and cells in more complex ways. The ensuing scientific debate demonstrates that rhetoric and language have primary roles in the discourse of contemporary biology, creating a rhetoric of cells.

Journal
Rhetoric Review
Published
2006-01-01
DOI
10.1207/s15327981rr2501_4
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (4)

  1. Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  2. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Rhetoric Review
  4. Journal of Business and Technical Communication

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