Rhetorical Criticism Essay Example

determined by other factors such as the variable which are the source, the message, the audience, the environment and the critic (Jamieson and Campbell 147). According to Rybacki and Rybacki, the process of Rhetorical Evaluation involves the determination of the morality and an expectation of the results as bound by the constraints and limitations set by reality and ideology under the framework of certain aesthetics that include the psychology of a person and the corresponding culture or subculture that such an individual belongs to (2). Therefore, the methodology that must be followed when making effective Rhetorical Criticism is based on the readability of the material that is presented and the artistic superiority of the material as well.There are other factors which must then be observed such as the integrity and social role or utility of such material and the manner in which it makes its immediate surface response.

This in turn reflects the orator’s wisdom and depth which is the next key step in any criticism since it will also determine to a certain extent the final aspect which is analyzed which is the effect that such speech has on the subsequent events (Bitzer 6).The process of Rhetorical Evaluation therefore can be understood as having the following objectives as based on the criteria that it employs and the functions that it plays in the communications of society.

The first objective of criticism is to establish the accuracy of any speech or public announcement. The criticism is presented in order to challenge the accuracy of any statement in an effort to improve the quality of the communication or idea, which is the second objective of criticism. This objective

of improving the quality of any rhetoric is established through the use of effective criticisms.The end effect of this process lies in establishing the social role that such rhetorical criticism plays in society or the so called “social role. (Goodnight 4)”

At this point it is relevant to discuss just how Rhetorical Criticism differs from the other form of criticism which is the literary criticism. Literary criticism, according to Herbert Wichelns, is more concerned with the evaluation of the wisdom, the beauty and the truth that is contained in great works of fiction that have been produced over the ages (Jamieson and Campbell 149). Rhetorical criticism, on the other hand, is more concerned or focused on the assessment of the persuasive effect on society of such situated oratories. It focuses on the discovery and appreciation of how public speakers are able to make the necessary adjustment to make their ideas adapt to the different types of audiences that they encounter (Jamieson and Campbell 152). These objectives of Rhetorical criticism, however, have also been subject to their own criticisms. The current issues that concern Rhetorical Criticism all concern a single topic which is the refinement or improvement of the methodology applied.

One of these concerns is with regard to the inclusion of more criteria as there are many who argue that the methodology involved in any criticism must necessarily include the consideration of function. Rhetorical criticism should go beyond the task of simple identifying and cataloguing of figures.It should also seek to understand just how these figures function in discourse (Goodnight 9). There are many other new issues that are surfacing with regard to the methodology as applied

to Rhetorical Criticism yet as these new issues arise, they themselves are subject to the same rhetoric which they seek to criticize. In a seemingly circuitous manner, the criticism of the criticism which attempts to improve the quality and test the integrity of the other is the new challenge faced by Rhetorical Criticism.