Advances in the History of Rhetoric May 2016

Student-Driven Imitation as a Means to Strengthening Rhetorical Agency—Or, Propelling Quintilian’s Chapter on Imitation into Today’s Teaching

Christina Matthiesen Aarhus University

Abstract

ABSTRACT Quintilian’s notion of imitation is often acclaimed for its focus on invention and appropriateness and for highlighting attunement to individual talent. Yet these aspects tend to be somewhat neglected in the practice of imitation as shaped by the classical rhetorical tradition, which primarily focuses on imitation exercises for beginners. This essay accentuates Quintilian’s chapter on imitation, which, as stressed by Murphy, is aimed at the mature student, in order to propel these precepts into today’s teaching. Specifically, this article advances a pedagogy of student-driven imitation constituted of five dimensions and characterized by the student’s own choice of text, valuing reflexive process over mirroring, and strengthening rhetorical agency. The exposition of student-driven imitation is supplemented with questions that students might address and excerpts from a student’s work.

Journal
Advances in the History of Rhetoric
Published
2016-05-03
DOI
10.1080/15362426.2016.1186579
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Topics
classical rhetoric modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism writing pedagogy teacher development
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