English 704

English 704, Fall 2004

CLASSICAL RHETORIC
Intellectual Sources of Contemporary Composition Theory, I

University of Wisconsin-Madison

INSTRUCTOR: David Fleming

CLASS MEETINGS: TR 11:00 - 12:15, 7105 H. C. White Hall

CLASS EMAIL LIST: dissoi-logoi@lists.students.wisc.edu

OFFICE: 6187D H. C. White Hall

OFFICE HOURS: W 1:00 - 2:30; F 11:00 - 12:00; & gladly by appt.

PHONE: 263-3367 (o)

EMAIL: jdfleming@wisc.edu

1. DESCRIPTION.

English 704 is a graduate-level survey of classical rhetoric – the art of public discourse that developed in Greek and Roman antiquity and exerted such enormous influence on later European political, cultural, and educational theory and practice. The course's center of gravity will be the writings of three teachers – Plato, Isocrates, and Aristotle – who were all active in 4th C. BCE Athens and concerned, though in very different ways, with the role of verbal discourse in the motivation, formation, and maintenance of human belief, knowledge, action, character, and community. But we'll spend a good bit of time rummaging through both pre- and post-4th C. BCE material as well, looking at the archaic and early classical contexts that formed the background for the Athenian "disciplining" of rhetoric and the subsequent institutionalization of that discipline during the Hellenistic and Roman eras. Our time frame will be roughly 750 BCE to 400 CE.

We should begin by noting that the term "classical rhetoric" is problematic. For one thing, it suggests a singularity that the diverse and often incompatible texts and theories considered here will belie. It also implies valorization: this is not just any art of discourse – it's the "classical," the canonical or best, art of discourse (though we'll quickly discover that many of these materials are better approached from a critical rather than an honorific point of view). In addition, the term "classical rhetoric" suggests a certain historical specificity, something requiring patient and expert reconstruction of "foreign" languages and long-vanished worlds; and yet a hallmark of modern composition studies has been its unabashed appropriation of classical rhetoric. Finally, the term implies disciplinary autonomy, even though its contemporary study clearly involves negotiating, transcending, even eschewing such traditional academic disciplines as classics, history, political philosophy, literary criticism, education, linguistics, and logic. Given all that, perhaps the course should be thought of less as a focused survey of "classical rhetoric" for historical purposes than as a wide-ranging investigation of "ancient rhetorics" for contemporary ones.

The best approach is probably to be flexible: to try to master the "tradition" even as we attend to the diversity of its sources; to give credit to the value of that tradition even as we acknowledge its limitations; to be sensitive to the historical embeddedness of ancient thought even as we keep an eye on contemporary relevance; and to blur disciplinary boundaries when they become obstacles to our understanding, even as we protect the quasi-autonomy of "our" field.

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2. ASSIGNMENTS.

Work in the course will include:

Reading and discussion. Expectations for reading – both close and wide – will be high. I will provide some lecture and some guidance for discussion, but most of the work here will be yours. Please come to every class meeting with good questions and comments about the readings and try to respond thoughtfully to the questions and comments of others.

Book report. You will be required to read at least one "outside" book and report on it to the class in a 30 minute presentation. The course bibliography includes many possible texts for this assignment, and I am open to nominations of your own; in addition, in the calendar below, I have recommended (and underlined) possible dates and titles for these reports.

Research paper. As a final project for the course, you may do one of three things: 1) write a traditional seminar paper concerning some specific problem or difficulty in classical rhetoric, the goal of which is to demonstrate progress in your understanding of that problem, even if that progress is manifest only by your increased awareness of the problem's complexity; 2) write an encyclopedia-style article on a relatively broad topic in classical rhetoric, e.g., enthymeme, style, ethos, with the goal of providing a generally accessible, relatively comprehensive survey of important work on a key topic or theme; 3) apply what you learn about classical rhetoric in a non-traditional way: for example, by designing a syllabus for an undergraduate course in classical rhetoric or building a web site that performs some intellectual or practical service for students of classical rhetoric. There will be periodic due dates during the semester for intermediate products from this project, e.g., a written proposal, a preliminary bibliography, a progress report, etc. All final projects should be around 15-20 pp, typed, DS, or the equivalent, and will be due during exam week.

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3. TEXTS.

Readings in the class will come from the following texts, all available for purchase at University Book Store on State Street.

Aristotle. On Rhetoric: A Theory of Civic Discourse. George A. Kennedy, trans. New York: Oxford UP, 1992. 0-19-506487-9. $19.95 paper.
Cicero. On the Ideal Orator. James May & Jakob Wisse, trans. New York: Oxford UP, 2001. 0-19-509198-1. $25.95 paper.
Cole, Thomas. The Origins of Rhetoric in Ancient Greece. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins UP, 1995. 0-8018-5118-1. $20.00 paper.
Dillon, John, ed. The Greek Sophists. New York: Penguin, 2003. 0-14-043689-8. $14 paper.
Hansen, Mogens Herman. The Athenian Democracy in the Age of Demosthenes: Structures, Principles, and Ideology. J. A. Crook, trans. Norman: U of Oklahoma P, 1999. 0-8061-3143-8. $18.00 paper.
Havelock, Eric A. Preface to Plato. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1963. 0-674-69906-8. $22.95 paper.
Homer. The Iliad. Robert Fagles, trans. New York: Penguin, 1991. 0-14-044592-7. $10.95 paper..
Isocrates I. David C. Mirhady & Yun Lee Too, Trans. Austin: U of Texas P, 2000. 0-292-75238-5. $24.95 paper.
Jarratt, Susan C. Rereading the Sophists: Classical Rhetoric Refigured. Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 1998. 0-8093-2224-2. $15.95 paper.
Kennedy, George A. Classical Rhetoric and its Christian and Secular Tradition from Ancient to Modern Times, 2nd ed. Chapel Hill: U of North Carolina P, 1999. 0-8078-4769-0. $18.95 paper.
Plato. Gorgias. James H. Nichols, trans. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 1998. 0-8014-8527-4. $9.95 paper.
Plato. Phaedrus. R. Hackforth, trans. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1972. 0-521-09703-7. $15.95 paper.
Quintilian on the Teaching of Speaking and Writing: Translations from Books One, Two, and Ten of the Institutio Oratoria. James J. Murphy, ed. Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 1987. 0-8093-1378-2. $14.95 paper.

In addition, there are books, articles, and chapters on reserve in College Library, in the English Department 7th floor library, and online through the library’s electronic reserves collection. Readings in the calendar are labeled with the following codes:

P = for purchase at University & Underground Book Stores
R = on reserve in College Library Reserve Collection (1st Floor)
E = on electronic reserve at College Library
D = in the 7th floor English Dept. library (photocopies on shelf devoted to 704)

I have also tried to indicate below which readings are the key readings for the day in question (these are in bold) and which are secondary or supplemental (all the rest for that day, listed in descending order of importance for our purposes). back to top

4. CALENDAR.

			Unit I: Archaic Greece (c. 750-480 BCE)

Week 01	Th	Sep 02	Introduction: Rhetoric; Society; & Education in Archaic Greece
			Kennedy (1999) ch. 1 (P R)
			Marrou (1956) Part One ch. I (R D)
			Walker (1996) (E D)
Week 02	Tu	Sep 07	"The Embassy to Achilles"
			Homer The Iliad Bk. IX (P R)
			Homer The Iliad Intro.; Bks I; II; VI (P R)
			Karp (1977) (R E D); Wilkerson (1982) (R E D)
	Th	Sep 09	Orality and Literacy in Archaic Greece
			Havelock (1963) Part I (P R)
			book report: Lord Singer of Tales
Week 03	Tu	Sep 14	Orality and Literacy in Archaic Greece
			Cole (1991) chs. 1-2 (P R)
			Connors 1986) (E D); Thomas & Webb (1994) (R D); Ong (1982) ch. 2 (D)
			Marrou (1956), Part One, ch. IV (R, D)
			book report: Walker Rhetoric and Poetics in Antiquity; or Enos Greek Rhetoric Before Aristotle back to top

			Unit II: Classical Greece (c. 480-399 BCE): Rhetors & Sophists

	Th	Sep 16	Fifth C. Political Discourse: The Mytilene Debate
			Thucydides History 3.1-50 (R D)
			Leff (1996b) (R E D); Yunis (1996) ch. IV (D)
			book report: Loraux Invention of Athens
Week 04	Tu	Sep 21	The Athenian Democracy
			Hansen (1999) (P R)
			book report: Farrar Origins of Democratic Thinking
	Th	Sep 23	Class conflict in classical Athens
			Ober (1996) chs. 3 & 7 (E D)
			book report: Ober Mass and Elite in Democratic Athens
Week 05	Tu	Sep 28	The sophists
			Protagoras in Dillon (P) pp. 1-42
			Kennedy (1999) chs. 2-3 (P R)
			Schiappa (1994) & Poulakos (1994) (R E D)
			Billig (1996) (E D)
	Th	Sep 30	The sophists cont'd
			Gorgias in Dillon (P) pp. 43-97
			Cole (1991) chs. 5-6 (P R)
			book report: Guthrie (1971) Kerferd (1981) or De Romilly (1992) on the sophists
Week 06	Tu	Oct 05	The sophists cont'd
			Antiphon in Dillon (P) pp. 133-202
			the Dissoi Logoi in Dillon (P) pp. 318-333
			Grimaldi (1996) (R E D)
	Th	Oct 07	The sophists & feminism
			Jarratt (1998) (P R)
Week 07	Tu	Oct 12	Women in classical Greece
			Glenn (1997) (R E D)
			book report: Pomeroy Goddesses Whores Wives and Slaves back to top

			Unit III: Classical Greece (399-323 BCE): The Philosophers

	Th	Oct 14	Plato
			Plato Gorgias (P R)
			Kennedy (1999) (P R) ch. 4 pp. 53-66
			Black (1958) (R E D); Schiappa (1991) (R E D)
Week 08	Tu	Oct 19	Plato cont'd
			Plato Gorgias (P R)
			Kastely (1991) (E D)
	Th	Oct 21	Plato cont'd
			Plato Phaedrus (P R)
			Kennedy (1999) (P R) ch. 4 pp. 66-74
			book report: Schiappa Beginnings of Rhetorical Theory
Week 09	Tu	Oct 26	Plato cont'd
			Plato Phaedrus (P R)
			Havelock (1963) Part Two (P R)
			Cole (1991) chs 7-8 (P R)
			book report: Harris Ancient Literacy
	Th	Oct 28	Race in classical rhetoric
			Bernal Black Athena (R D), Intro. (pp. 1-23) & ch. 1
			book report: Black Athena Revisited back to top
Week 10	Tu	Nov 02	No class (don't forget to vote!)
	Th	Nov 04	Isocrates
			Isocrates Against the Sophists (P R)
			Jaeger (1990) (R E D)
Week 11	Tu	Nov 09	Isocrates cont'd
			Isocrates Antidosis (P R)
			Gillis (1969) (E D)
			Marrou (1956) Part One chs. VI-VII (R)
			book report: Haskins Logos and Power in Isocrates and Aristotle or Poulakos Speaking for the Polis
	Th	Nov 11	Aristotle: proofs
			Aristotle Rhetoric I.1-3 (P R)
			Kennedy (1999) (P R) ch. 4 pp. 74-97
			Solmsen (1974) (R E D); Lord (1981) (R E D)
			Walzer Tiffany & Gross (2000) (R E D)
Week 12	Tu	Nov 16	Aristotle: enthymeme
			Aristotle Rhetoric I.1-3 (P R)
			McBurney (1936) (R E D); Bitzer (1959) (R E D); Conley (1984) (E D)
			Gage (1984); Walker (1994); Burnyeat (1996)
			book report: Atwill Rhetoric Reclaimed: Aristotle and the Liberal Arts Tradition
	Tu	Nov 18	Aristotle: topoi
			Aristotle Rhetoric I.4-II.28 (P R)
			Huseman (1965) (R E D); Grimaldi (1958) (R E D)
			Conley (1978) (D)
			book report: Garver Aristotle's Rhetoric: An Art of Character
Week 13	Tu	Nov 23	Aristotle: style
			Aristotle Rhetoric III
			Kirby (1997) (D)
			book report: Finley Ancient Slavery back to top
	Th	Nov 25	Thanksgiving: no class

			Unit IV: Hellenistic and Roman Rhetorics (323 BCE – 410 CE)

Week 14	Tu	Nov 30	Hellenistic Rhetorics: stasis, style
			Dieter (1950) (R E D)
			browse Silva Rhetoricae: The Forest of Rhetoric
	Th	Dec 02	Hellenistic Rhetorics, cont'd: pedagogy
			Fleming "Progymnasmata" (handout)
			Aphthonius in Nadeau (1952) (E D)
			Marrou (1956) Part Two chs. I-XII (R) (esp. ch. X)
Week 15	Tu	Dec 07	Cicero
			Cicero On the Ideal Orator (P R)
			Kennedy (1999) (P R) ch. 5
			book report: Kennedy Art of Persuasion in Rome or Clark Rhetoric in Greco-Roman Education
	Th	Dec 09	Cicero cont'd
			Cicero On the Ideal Orator (P R)
Week 16	Tu	Dec 14	Quintilian
			Quintilian (1987) (P R)
			Marrou (1956) Part Three chs. I-VII (R) (esp. ch. VI)
			Kennedy (1999) (P R) chs. 6-9