Rhetoric in Science and Technology Studies: in Defense of Classical Rhetoric. Against Posthumanist Rhetoric

Abstract

While the problem of applying rhetorical theory (téchne rhetoriké) in research encompassing areas such as feminist new materialisms and object-oriented ontologies rests on the problematization of rhetoric, and in some cases even its rejection, contemporary rhetorical theory has enthusiastically embraced this “ethico-onto-epistemological” program. Without questioning the compelling results of these studies, I pose a question that, in my opinion, touches on the essence of the problem associated with the application of classical rhetorical theory. The tools of rhetorical theory arose from: first, research on language; and second, the accuracy of communication and mutual understanding between the speaker and their audience. The issues outlined above assume that, unlike classical rhetorical theory (téchne rhetoriké), there exists a contemporary version. It is unclear, however, how it would differ from classical theory and what its tools would be.

Referring to the problems of applying rhetoric to the study of texts from the fields of science and technology, or rather, technology, I will attempt to demonstrate that the tools of classical rhetorical theory are fully sufficient to describe both the applications and the texts themselves. I should also point out from the outset that classical rhetorical theory (téchne rhetoriké) was from the outset linked to the Organon, or Aristotle’s logical writings. Certain proposals that appeared in the history of rhetoric, particularly in the 16th century and by scholars such as Pierre Ramus and Audomar Taleus, and in the 20th century, in the studies of Richard McKeon, among others, did not actually contribute much new. Separating research on logic and then language (especially after de Saussure’s work and the subsequent emergence of research from the Formalists and Structuralists) from classical rhetorical theory only complicated the description of the problems. Classical rhetorical theory (téchne rhetoriké) must be viewed as a theory of the stages of shaping any text. Rhetoric understood in this way, especially in its inventive phase, possesses tools (including topical theories, but also considered as part of argumentation and the study of status, as well as general principles of text preparation) that facilitate the description and analysis of objects, as well as the correct formulation and subsequent
resolution of research questions.

This study aims to demonstrate that classical rhetorical theory (téchne rhetoriké) remains a valid and useful tool, and that its modifications do not necessarily advance it.