Novel Applications

            The chapters in Feminist Rhetorical Practices did a nice job summarizing what we have been working toward all semester in this course.  While their ideas of “tacking in” and “tacking out” provided readers with the necessary groundwork for understanding the rest of their theories.  I thought their more important analyses came in chapter six, which is essentially an extension of five. The following quote got me thinking about the current rhetorical landscape and Royster and Kirsch’s argument there has been a huge shift in subjects addressed.  The text reads, “ [the] process of paying attention, of being mindful, of attending to the subtle, intuitive, not-so-obvious parts of research has the capacity to yield rich rewards.  It allows scholars to observe and notice, to listen and hear voices often neglected or silenced, and to notice more overtly their own responses to what they are seeing, reading, reflecting on, and encountering during their research processes” (85).  Would we as scholars have the same questions, making the same observations within rhetorical, compositional and literary studies if not for this infusion of diverse thought processes?  It is an interesting assertion, though I’m not entirely sure these research practices are entirely new, but rather specifically relevant.  I feel like I make most of the moves Royster and Kirsch suggest in my weekly blog posts in this and other classes, by applying modern situations to the more fundamental theories of rhetoric.  I feel like such comparison brings out a lot of the subtleties brought up in these authors’ depiction of critical imagination as well as strategic contemplation.  I understand the importance of reviving old ideals to understand they were being elucidated through a certain lens and perhaps uncover other attitudes and ideas of the time.  To understand that these were not the only claims, but the only claims being made is an important insight these authors have provided us.  Again, I don’t necessarily consider this any sort of revelation, more a building on a rhetorical archetype, but this particular interpretation helps to specifically identify what we have been doing from the get go with our rhetoricians.  Perhaps having this knowledge will allow us to go even more in depth, into the minds and lifestyles of those responsible for the creation of our evolving modern ideals.