Philosophy & Rhetoric Sep 2012

Rhetoric's Other:

Lisbeth Lipari Denison University

Abstract

Abstract It does not seem terribly unfair to say that studies of both rhetoric and dialogue have tended, by and large, to pass over listening in favor of speaking. In scholarly as well as quotidian parlance, it would appear that both rhetoric and dialogue are principally concerned with speech, banishing listening to the silent subservience of rhetoric's other. Whichever way it is glossed—as rhetoric, dialogue, language, or argumentation—the Western conception of logos emphasizes speaking at the expense of listening (Fiumara 1990). And the problem with conceiving of logos in terms of speech and speaking is not only that it ignores the importance of listening but also that it obscures how listening makes the ethical response possible. Drawing on the philosophy of Emmanuel Levinas, this article examines the ethical exigency of the face and its relation to primordial discourse in order to disclose the otherwise hidden ethical significance of listening and its vocation as a form of co-constitutive communicative action that can “listen persons to speech.”

Journal
Philosophy & Rhetoric
Published
2012-09-01
DOI
10.5325/philrhet.45.3.0227
Open Access
Closed
Topics
multilingual writers argument

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (5)

  1. Micke et al. (2025)
    Epideictic Listening: From a Reflective Case Study to a Theory of Community Ethos
    Rhetoric Society Quarterly
  2. Hotez (2024)
    Interrupting Identity: Zionism and the Palestinian Other
    Rhetoric Review
  3. Musgrave (2018)
    The Rupture as Ethical Imperative: Reading the<i>Phaedrus</i>through Levinas's Ethics
    Philosophy & Rhetoric
  4. Pinchevski (2014)
    Levinas as a Media Theorist:
    Philosophy & Rhetoric
  5. Reeves (2013)
    Suspended Identification:
    Philosophy & Rhetoric

Cites in this index (1)

  1. Ratcliffe (1999)
    Rhetorical Listening: A Trope for Interpretive Invention and a "Code of Cross-C…
    College Composition and Communication
Also cites 6 works outside this index ↓
  1. Levinas, Emmanuel. 1987. “God and Philosophy.” In Collected Philosophical Papers, trans. Alphonso Lingis, 153…
     ↗
  2. Lipari, Lisbeth. 2004. “Listening for the Other: Ethical Implications of the Buber-Levinas Encounter.” Commun…
     ↗
  3. Lipari, Lisbeth. 2009. “Listening Otherwise: The Voice of Ethics.” International Journal of Listening 23 (1):…
     ↗
  4. Ong, Walter J. 1982. Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word. New York: Methuen.
     ↗
  5. Perpich, Diane. 2005. “Figurative Language and the ‘Face’ in Levinas's Philosophy.” Philosophy and Rhetoric 3…
     ↗
  6. Perpich, Diane. 2008. The Ethics of Emmanuel Levinas. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 28 View in citation network →

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