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Category Archives: 2008

2008 issue of LORE Journal presented by the Rhetoric and Writing Department of San Diego State University

Sinister Science: Eugenics, Nazism, and the Technocratic Rhetoric of the Human Betterment Foundation by Katherine Swift, San Diego State

RWS-SB 2008 Comments Off on Sinister Science: Eugenics, Nazism, and the Technocratic Rhetoric of the Human Betterment Foundation by Katherine Swift, San Diego State

One of the responsibilities of rhetoric is to point up the use of dyslogistic discourse in the creation of a climate of fear favorable to the scapegoating of targeted groups of people. That technocratic rhetoric may be used toward such ends is pointed out by Steven Katz, who maintains that the focus on expediency in technical communication can create an “ethos of objectivity, logic, and narrow focus,” with devastating effects on the people thus objectified (257).

Past and Present in the Songs of Scott H. Biram by William Schraufnagel, San Diego State University

RWS-SB 2008 Comments Off on Past and Present in the Songs of Scott H. Biram by William Schraufnagel, San Diego State University
President McKinley

The question of “public memory” is immediately troubled by a paradox, for strictly speaking, “memory” is a private affair. What each of us understands by the trope of “memory” is based on observations of our own psychological workings. These alone seem to me complex enough, as anyone might attest who has attempted to think, write, or speak about his or her own memories.

Big Brother Meets the “Alpha Mom”: Tensions in the Media Standardization of Motherhood by Lauren Lang, San Diego State University

RWS-SB 2008 Comments Off on Big Brother Meets the “Alpha Mom”: Tensions in the Media Standardization of Motherhood by Lauren Lang, San Diego State University

On 26 January 2007, Today on NBC aired a segment as part of its series on “Today’s Woman” entitled “Cocktail Playdates for Moms.” The segment was ostensibly intended to provide a neutral report on what it identified as a growing trend: mothers who enjoyed a glass of wine or beer together while their children played.

The Sinister Science of the Human Betterment Foundation and a Rhetoric of Motives by Katherine Swift, San Diego State

RWS-SB 2008 Comments Off on The Sinister Science of the Human Betterment Foundation and a Rhetoric of Motives by Katherine Swift, San Diego State

My research was conducted at the Institute Archives of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena where I examined the original documents of E. S. Gosney and the Human Betterment Foundation, and the Historical Files on Biology Division. Caltech is the holder of Gosney’s effects since, as founder of the Human Betterment Foundation, he had its real estate holdings transferred to the university’s biology department in 1942, making Caltech an endowment worth more than $470,000. T

Assessing Arguments through Coherence Systems: A “Misunderstanding” during Hurricane Katrina by Martha S. Cheng, Rollins College

RWS-SB 2008 Comments Off on Assessing Arguments through Coherence Systems: A “Misunderstanding” during Hurricane Katrina by Martha S. Cheng, Rollins College

The current administration’s tenure has been plagued by accusations of unpreparedness and incompetence in a range of situations; 9/11, Katrina, and Iraq being the most obvious. The media has provided ample opportunity for victims of these crises to condemn the government and for representatives of the government (or their supporters) to respond.

The selves of self-help books: Framing, argument, and audience construction for social and autonomous selves by Martha Cheng

RWS-SB 2008 Comments Off on The selves of self-help books: Framing, argument, and audience construction for social and autonomous selves by Martha Cheng

Introduction The traditional American values of individualism, self-improvement, and hard work have supported the publication and popularity of self-help books since our country’s inception. As early as the 1700’s Puritans were reading guides on how to live piously and do good. (Starker, 1989) Over the years self-help has expanded to secular topics and now applies […]

HIDDEN TEXT: Making the Invisible Visible by Liane Bryson and Lauren McLennan

RWS-SB 2008 Comments Off on HIDDEN TEXT: Making the Invisible Visible by Liane Bryson and Lauren McLennan

Because our students are the target audience of marketers, they are constantly bombarded with jingles and slogans designed to appeal to their perceived sense of what the world is like or how the world should be. These media messages so closely align with their own way of thinking that these slogans and jingles become acceptable […]