Kenneth Burke's Rhetorical Theory Concepts

Kenneth Burke's Key Concepts in Rhetorical Theory

• Dramatism: Burke's primary theoretical framework. It views human communication as a form of "drama" with actors, scenes, and purposes. This perspective sees language and action as a persuasive attempt to induce others to take a particular stance.

• The Pentad: A tool for analyzing rhetorical texts. It consists of five elements: act, scene, agent, agency, and purpose. Analysis using the pentad aims to show how a speaker constructs a persuasive argument across these elements.

• Identification: A fundamental concept in Burke's theory. He argues that persuasion occurs through identification, not through argument alone. Speakers successfully persuade when they establish common ground and shared values with their audience.

• Mortification and Victimage: Strategies of purification employed by individuals or groups seeking to address issues associated with guilt or shame. Mortification involves self-criticism; victimage involves scapegoating or blaming an external entity or person for problems.

• Terministic Screens: The language and concepts that a culture uses to define and interpret the world. These "screens" shape the way individuals perceive and respond to reality. These screens influence the way people act and think, and become central to understanding how and why a speaker communicates. This creates a filter that impacts how a listener processes and interprets information.

• Perspective by Incongruity: Burke's concept about communication emphasizing the surprising nature of language. Effective discourse is created by juxtaposing seemingly contradictory ideas, creating a tension that invites the audience to engage and re-consider their perspective.

• The Rhetorical Situation: Burke, by examining other rhetoricians' views on the topic, proposed that it is not enough to find issues that need addressing. The situation demands a particular response. The rhetorical situation must be considered when analyzing and applying any rhetoric, as a response is not always needed.

Key Applications of Burke's Theories

• Analyzing Speeches: The pentad helps to understand how a speaker constructs an argument, identifying the "act" or action, the "scene" or context, the "agent" or person performing the act, the "agency" or means by which the act occurred, and the "purpose" of the act. This approach reveals layers of meaning and strategies within speeches, and shows how the speaker constructs and frames the situation to their needs.

• Understanding Social Movements: By examining how groups construct identification and their terministic screens, Burke's work offers valuable insights into how social movements develop and maintain cohesion. These concepts highlight how leaders construct identification to create cohesion within the group, especially in response to social issues.

• Studying Cultural Values: By studying the ways a culture employs language and concepts (terministic screens), Burke's work gives us a potent tool to analyze cultural values as seen within the communication of citizens.

Burke's Key Criticisms

• Complexity: Burke's theories can be complex and require careful attention. The dense and intricate nature of the concepts can make them challenging to grasp for some.

• Subjectivity: The analysis of terministic screens, in particular, raises questions about subjectivity, with the implication that the interpretation and understanding of rhetoric depends fundamentally on the researcher's view of the world.

• Ambiguity: Some of Burke's concepts, such as identification, overlap with other rhetorical approaches. Burke's theories are open to a variety of interpretations. It may be unclear in some cases how the principles are supposed to be applied when faced with a complex social issue.

• Limited scope: Critics argue Burke's work often focuses heavily on the rhetoric itself and less directly on impacts, leaving certain aspects of real-world outcomes underexamined. More focus could be placed on the actual impacts of the speech; although Burke's concept could be applicable to understand how a speech could affect public opinion and thus affect policy, it may not completely explain the processes of those changes.

Explore Kenneth Burke's key concepts in rhetorical theory, including dramatism, the pentad, identification, and strategies of mortification and victimage. This quiz will challenge your understanding of how these ideas shape communication and persuasion.