THE REVIVAL OF RHETORIC: A BIBLIOGRAPHIC ESSAY

The author asserts that renewed interest in rhetoric, evident throughout the professional discourse of English studies, is having a salutary effect on the theory and practice of the teaching of composition and basic writing. The recent turn to theory in the English departments, especially poststructuralism, has brought "literature" and "composition" blocs closer together precisely in their joint arena of rhetorical studies. The result has been a strengthening of the subdiscipline of "rhetoric and composition" relative to the former hegemony of literary studies. Looking at the convergence of classical and contemporary rhetoric, we see at least three important points of intersection where teachers of basic writing should want to look: First, rhetoric is not science, but humanist discourse aiming to promote democratic processes in public discourse. We find a second intersection in the return to prominence of the art of persuasion, as distinct from neutral communication. Yet a third area where old and new rhetorics intersect is the holding up of invention as a crucial tactic for the writer. After a survey of the historical texts, the article critically analyzes and recommends some practical guides for basic writing teachers.