Comments on: Discourse among yourselves http://erikanderica.org/erica/2006/01/07/discourse-among-yourselves/ A blog by Erica Schemper Sun, 20 Jul 2008 13:56:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.2 By: Erik http://erikanderica.org/erica/2006/01/07/discourse-among-yourselves/#comment-48 Erik Tue, 10 Jan 2006 20:32:11 +0000 http://erikanderica.org/erica/2006/01/07/discourse-among-yourselves/#comment-48 "Rhetoric of assent" is a term coined by Wayne Booth in his <i>Modern Dogma and the Rhetoric of Assent</i>. His main question is "whether it is possible to know, in a rational way, when we should change our minds, or how we should talk about what to believe. These are issues that require rhetoric, and particularly a rhetoric of systematic assent that recognizes good reasons of many kinds." Booth is writing in response to the political upheavals of the 1960s and the lack of reason in many of that period's disagreements. Booth's argument is awfully complicated, but he's interested in shifting focus from doubt to assent. (The quote is from <i>The Rhetorical Tradition</i>.) “Rhetoric of assent” is a term coined by Wayne Booth in his Modern Dogma and the Rhetoric of Assent. His main question is “whether it is possible to know, in a rational way, when we should change our minds, or how we should talk about what to believe. These are issues that require rhetoric, and particularly a rhetoric of systematic assent that recognizes good reasons of many kinds.” Booth is writing in response to the political upheavals of the 1960s and the lack of reason in many of that period’s disagreements.

Booth’s argument is awfully complicated, but he’s interested in shifting focus from doubt to assent.

(The quote is from The Rhetorical Tradition.)

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