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World of Rhetoric I: BIC 1413
Contact Information:
Name: Dr. Samuel P. Perry
Office: Morrison 101.8
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: (254) 710-7390
Link to purchase e-book:
https://he.kendallhunt.com/product/world-rhetoric-volume-i
A few words about the course:
If there is a mantra or a slogan for the BIC, it would undoubtedly be Socrates’ claim that
“The unexamined life is not worth living.” So, one might logically ask, “What are we examining
in this class?” or perhaps, “What part of life do we examine when we study rhetoric?” The
answers among each faculty member teaching the course uniformly involve studying writing and
speaking, specifically as those forms of communication relate to persuasion. Beyond our initial
agreement on these matters, the answers undoubtedly become more complicated and
individually situated the longer that we talk about what rhetoric is and what it does. In fact, the
potential for disagreement on the matter of defining rhetoric suggests at least two very
important things about the subject: 1) Most every decision in life requires debate. 2) A
willingness to approach issues from a perspective that insists lines of respectful dialogue must
remain open between parties responsible for making those decisions.
A close reading of the last paragraph reveals that no definition of rhetoric, directly or
indirectly stated, is to be found. Instead, you see a series of statements about the questions that
surface when you ask a rhetoric professor what rhetoric is and what it does. During the course
of this semester and the next, your charge is to craft a working definition of rhetoric and an
explanation of what it does for yourself that you can clearly articulate to others. This is difficult.
Rhetoric defies definition because rhetoric constantly evolves as people use it to persuade one
another of the validity of particular realities, or as particular realities require different types of
messages in order to address the complications arising from new and unique situations.
Rhetoric must evolve because the world around us changes daily. The words, symbols, and
images we use to describe and make sense of the changes in the world matter greatly. The
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World of Rhetoric sequence in the BIC welcomes you into a conversation about why these
choices matter and the effects of these choices.
Science fiction author Philip K. Dick once wrote, “The basic tool for the manipulation of
reality is the manipulation of words. If you can control the meaning of words, you can control
the people who must use the words.” Our conversations revolve around a premise similar to this
one. Though, we hope to find more ethical and tenable outcomes than Philip Dick generally did
in his stories. Rhetoric, or the manipulation of words and symbols in order to persuade
ourselves and others, has a great potential to create change the world around us. We go forward
in hopes of using that potential to better our university life here at Baylor and in the world
beyond Baylor.
Course Goals and Objectives
Goals
Thematically, we will be working together to answer these three questions:
What is rhetoric?
How does rhetoric reflect a community’s values?
How do communities use rhetoric to deal with controversial issues?
Each of these questions and the answers provide avenues by which we work toward the
following goals and objectives.
The abstract and the lofty
1) Understand the responsibility of citizens to write and speak well (badly paraphrased
Cicero)
a. Hold accountable those people and organizations who persuade them of
something
b. Hold themselves accountable for the things they try to persuade others to do or
say
2) Grasp concepts related to the social and discursive construction of the world around
them.
a. Rhetoric is generative of particular understandings of reality
b. Rhetoric can change and revise particular understandings of reality
c. Rhetoric requires thoughtful and ethical use because of points A&B
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The practical and more directly measurable
1) Understand the basic principles and techniques of “good” writing and speaking.
2) Understand the ways in which writing and speaking relate to your chosen major and the
career to which you aspire. (If you have not decided on either of these, do not fret.
Writing and speaking well are intrinsically valuable. I promise. If you do not believe me
by the end of the semester, it will not have been for a lack of my repeating and
supporting the claim).
3) Understand the basic structures and principles of an argument.
4) Be able to construct an argument, written or spoken, that follows the basic structures
and principles of argumentation.
Objectives
1) Writing
a. Craft an essay with a minimal number of mechanical and stylistic errors.
b. Sustain an argument that works to support a clearly and concisely written thesis
statement through an entire 5-7 page essay.
c. Integrate evidence from classroom discussions of texts and evidence from outside
of the class into essays with proper attribution.
d. Write an essay which follows the argumentative structures and connections
between claim, warrant, and data (Toulmin Model)
2) Speaking
a. Competently and comfortably address an audience without delivery being
contingent upon the rote memorization of a speech.
b. Apply the principles a-d from writing section into speech.
Course Requirements
Assignments: I will hand out detailed assignment sheets. These sheets are also referred to as
“prompts.” You are responsible for all work listed on the prompt and for any additions or deletions I
make during class. This is a time-consuming course, but you will be able to keep up if you follow the
assignments and set aside time each day to work on your writing. All written assignments should be
completed using correct MLA format.
Speeches: You will give two formal oral presentations.
Essays: You will complete three essay assignments and two NYT assignments. Your work in
progress during each of these assignments will be a factor in the essay grade.
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You must complete all major speaking and writing assignments to pass the
course. In addition, failure to complete daily work will have a serious negative
effect on your grade.
Class participation/daily work: You are expected to participate in a meaningful way in class
discussion; in fact, a portion of your grade is based on the quality of your participation. In addition to
speaking up in class, you are expected to contribute in a positive way to the overall learning atmosphere
of the class. This means any use of electronic devices during class meetings should pertain to accessing
your book or as directed by your instructor for class activities and assignments.
Daily work is the second part of this score. Daily work includes your instructor’s assessment of your
completion of additional assignments. Those additional assignments may be informal presentations
over New York Times reports, short-answer homework, discussion board posts, blogs, journals, reviews
of supplemental readings, and so forth. Professors are required neither to assign additional daily work
nor to specify point values for daily work activities. However, your individual instructor may make
daily work points even more concrete and will inform you of due dates, grading policies, and point
values for such work should it be assigned. Otherwise, the class participation/daily work grade reflects
your instructor’s evaluation of the elements described above.
Policies
All attendance policies are adjustable in light of COVID 19 and the resulting needs for
social distancing and quarantining. Attendance to classes is obviously an important
part of university life, but the health of students, staff, and faculty are paramount.
Please, communicate frequently with your professor if there are pandemic related
issues that require adjustment to any of the below attendance policies.
Academic Integrity
Plagiarism or any form of cheating involves a breach of student-teacher trust. Any work
submitted under your name is expected to be your own, neither composed by anyone else as a
whole or in part, nor handed over to another person for complete or partial revision. Be sure to
document all ideas that are not your own. Instances of plagiarism or any other act of academic
dishonesty will be reported to the Honor Council and may result in failure of the course. Not
understanding plagiarism is not an excuse. Baylor students are expected to be intimately familiar
with the Honor Code at: http://www.baylor.edu/honorcode/
Academic Success
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Every student who has been admitted to Baylor can be successful and I want to partner with you
to help you thrive academically. Be sure to take advantage of the many resources available for
academic success, including coming to see me during my office hours. Keep in mind that most of
these contact hours will be online for this semester given the constraints of the pandemic.
Students who regularly utilize the great resources in the Paul L. Foster Success Center
(http://www.baylor.edu/successcenter/) are among my most successful students. If your
academic performance in this class is substandard, I will submit an Academic Progress Report to
the Success Center so that the team of coordinated care professionals can ensure that you get the
help you need.
Attendance
During this unprecedented time of a global pandemic, class attendance must be approached
differently from the way it would in a standard semester. If you are sick, have any symptoms
(even if they are slight) that might relate to COVID-19, or know that you have been directly
exposed to COVID-19, please stay home to protect yourself, your classmates, and your
professors. As your instructor, I will expect that you work with me to enable you to receive any
necessary course content (including classroom lectures) and complete any assignments, quizzes,
or exams that you may miss due to being sick or having COVID-19-related symptoms. I also
expect you to notify me prior to class if you will be missing for COVID-19 or any other health-
related reason. If you are well, have no symptoms, and are not required to remain at home for
any COVID-19 or other health-related reason, you should attend class and abide by all of the
University’s health protocols. Attendance during this time may take many forms due to the
various course formats being offered this fall. Be sure to pay careful attention to the additional
details below that describe how attendance and class participation will be incorporated into my
course. You must regularly check Baylor email and Canvas for updates concerning changes in
class related to quarantine or isolation measures. We recommend checking each location twice a
day at minimum.
Importantly, Baylor’s Health Services department on the Waco campus no longer provides notes
to “excuse” students from missed classes. Please do not ask Health Services for such
documentation.
Make-up Work: Make-up work will be given at the instructor’s discretion.
Turning in Work: All written work is due at the beginning of class unless I instructed otherwise. E-
mailing work that is due at the beginning of class is not acceptable, as we expect everything to go
through Turnitin. Also excuses such as, “The printer in my dorm/the library/the Success Center wasn’t
working” is tantamount to “My dog ate my homework”— are basically, unacceptable. A semester’s worth
of Paw Prints is less than $30. If you run out, you can still print, and the additional amount (7 cents a
page) will be added to your University account. Therefore, “I ran out of Paw Prints” is tantamount to
“My dog ate my homework.” The price is the same for front and back printing, so I encourage you to be
green and save money by using 2-sided printing. In addition, turn in all work according to MLA
guidelines. I am not obligated to accept any assignments that are submitted incorrectly.
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Keeping up with Class: It is your responsibility to check Canvas regularly. It is absolutely necessary
if you miss class or come in late. Course handouts, due dates, general announcements, etc., will be
posted to this class on my individual Canvas page. You will need to check both of these pages regularly
and often.
Policies and assignments may vary from course section to course section. If you have questions about
the course, you need to ask me—not your roommate or friend who is in another section!
Baylor University Honor Code: The following statements appear in the Policies and Procedures
section of the Baylor University Student Handbook:
Use of Plagiarism Detection Software: BIC 1413 faculty members expect all students to
understand the importance of strict adherence to the honor policies, and we will follow established
university procedures, including referral to the Baylor Honor Council, in dealing with any Honor Code
violations. BIC 1413 faculty will confer with each other as well as consult web-based search engines to
assure that students adhere to the honor policies.
All major assignments will be submitted to turnitin.com. This is done automatically when you submit
your assignments through designated portals associated with each assignment. You shall not use the
portal for any course other than yours to “precheck” an assignment. Failure to comply with those
instructions will result in your failing that assignment. Baylor’s official policy on using plagiarism
detection software is excerpted below:
"Students agree that by taking this course [BIC 1413], all required papers, exams, class
projects or other assignments submitted for credit may be submitted to turnitin.com or
similar third parties to review and evaluate for originality and intellectual integrity. A
description of the services, terms and conditions of use, and privacy policy of turnitin.com is
available on its web site: http://www.turnitin.com. Students understand all work submitted
to turnitin.com will be added to its database of papers. Students further understand that if
the results of such a review support an allegation of academic dishonesty, the course work in
question as well as any supporting materials may be submitted to the Honor Council for
investigation and further action."
Penalties for late submissions may vary by instructor and circumstance. About the
Office of Access and Learning Accommodation: Any student requiring academic
accommodations related to a documented disability should inform the professor immediately at
the beginning of the semester. The student is responsible for obtaining appropriate
documentation and information regarding accommodations from the Baylor University Office of
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Access and Learning Accommodation (OALA) (Paul L. Foster Success Center, 1st floor, East
Wing of Sid Richardson). Students who need special assistance during the semester should
notify the professor and one of the following resources:
The Office of Access and Learning Accommodation
(254) 710-3605; Located in the Paul L. Foster Success Center in Sid Richardson
The Paul L. Foster Success Center
(254) 710-8212; http://www.baylor.edu/successcenter)
The Counseling Center (http://www.baylor.edu/counseling_center/)
Title IX Office and Equity Office
Civil Rights Policy and Sexual and Interpersonal Misconduct Policy
Baylor University does not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of sex,
gender, race, color, disability, national origin, ancestry, age (over 40), citizenship, genetic
information or the refusal to submit to a genetic test, past, current, or prospective service in the
uniformed services, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, Texas, or local
law (collectively referred to as Protected Characteristics).
If you or someone you know would like help related to an experience involving:
1. Sexual or gender-based harassment, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, stalking, intimate
partner violence, or retaliation for reporting one of these types of prohibited conduct, please visit
www.baylor.edu/titleix, or contact us at (254) 710-8454, or [email protected].
2. Harassment (excluding those issues listed in #1) or adverse action based on Protected
Characteristics, please visit www.baylor.edu/equity, or contact us at (254) 710-7100 or
The Office of Equity and Title IX understands the sensitive nature of these situations and can
provide information about available on- and off-campus resources, such as counseling and
psychological services, medical treatment, academic support, university housing, advocacy
services, and other forms of assistance that may be available. Staff members at the office can
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also explain your rights and procedural options. You will not be required to share your
experience. If you or someone you know feels unsafe or may be in imminent danger, please call
the Baylor Police Department (254-710-2222) or Waco Police Department (9-1-1) immediately.
Except for Confidential Resources, all University Employees are designated Responsible
Employees and thereby mandatory reporters of potential sexual and interpersonal misconduct
violations. Confidential Resources who do not have to report include those working in the
Counseling Center, Health Center and the University Chaplain, Dr. Burt Burleson.
Military Student Advisory
Veterans and active duty military personnel are welcomed and encouraged to communicate, in
advance if possible, any special circumstances (e.g., upcoming deployment, drill requirements,
disability accommodations). You are also encouraged to visit the VETS Program Office with any
questions at (254) 710-7264.
Texts:
Note: Please use the edition and translations of the books listed below to maintain continuity in
class discussions.
Books
Perry, Samuel, and Sarah Walden, eds. World of Rhetoric Volume I. Second Edition. Dubuque,
IA: Kendall Hunt Publishing, 2020. eBook.
https://he.kendallhunt.com/product/world-rhetoric-volume-i
Plato. Gorgias. Trans. W. C. Hembold. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall/Library of Liberal
Arts, 1997. Print.
Plato. Phaedrus. Trans. Alexander Nehamas, and Paul Woodruff. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett
Pub., 1995. Print.
Newspapers:
Please see New York Times assignment prompts for details on how to get print copies of the
newspaper. Assignments will require regular reading of the NYT, and students are encouraged
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to read from as many news sources as possible. The university provides electronic access to the
NYT.
Style Manual
The Purdue OWL. Purdue U Writing Lab, 2010. Web. 15 Aug. 2014.
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/
Miscellaneous:
You will from time to time receive links to articles or videos that you will be expected to
read/view for class. At times, you will be asked to send articles or videos that are examples of
some of the principles we cover in class.
Point Distribution and Description of Assignments:
Table 1: Total Points and Letter Grades
A = 930 – 1000 points B- = 800 – 829 points* D+ = 680 – 699 points
A- = 900 – 929 points C+ = 780 – 799 points D = 630 – 679 points
B+ = 870 – 899 points C = 730 – 779 points D- = 600 – 629 points*
B = 830 – 869 points C- = 700 – 729 points* F = 599 points and below
*Final grades assigned for coursework at Baylor are as follows: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+,
D, D-, and F. The percentages will be figured on a 1,000 point scale. A point total of 923 would
equate to a percentage of 92.3% for the class, an A-.
Table 2: Assignments and Point Values
Assignment Point Value
Essay 1 75
Essay 1 process grade 20
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Speech 1 75
Speech 1 process grade 20
New York Times 1 50
Essay 2 125
Essay 2 process grade 20
Speech 2 125
Speech 2 process grade 20
New York Times 2 50
Essay 3 200
Essay 3 process grade 20
Class Participation/Daily Work 100
Large-Group Quizzes 100
Total Points for all assignments 999 (+1 bonus pt.*) = 1,000 pts.
Assignment Descriptions
Essay 1: Assess “What to a Slave is the 4th of July” Based on a Platonic Framework
The essay must use texts from the first unit of this course (Plato). You will refer to those texts,
particularly to Plato’s understanding of the good, the true, and the beautiful, to assess Frederick
Douglass’s speech “What to a Slave is the 4th of July?” The Would Plato see examples of the
good, the true, and the beautiful in Douglass’s critique of the early Republic? According to the
Platonic framework, is this a “good” rhetorical work? Your essay should take a position on those
questions and draw both from Plato’s dialogues and from the speech to support your claim.
Speech 1: Speech to Convince
You will deliver a persuasive speech (5 to 6 minutes) logically defending your point of view on a
controversial subject dealing with cultural values. Find a main editorial or an Op-Ed article in
the New York Times where two criteria are met: (1) The writer of the editorial has taken a clear
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position on a subject dealing with cultural values; (2) You disagree with the perspective taken in
the editorial.
Essay 2: Identify and Analyze Situated and Imagined Audience
Use the readings from this unit to write an essay that addresses the complexities of a situated
audience and an imagined audience as it relates to a specific speech. Your professor will supply
a speech bank and you will choose ONE speech to analyze. The paper will address the ways in
which the speech writer constructs and appeals to the audience through the course of the speech
that you choose to analyze. The rhetorical choices made in crafting the speech will tell you
something of the audience that the rhetor physically addressed, as well as something of the
audience that the rhetor imagined as the ideal audience for the text. The similarities and
differences between the physically present audience and the imagined audience should reveal
something about the speech itself as well as something about the situation in which it was given.
Speech 2: Speech to Actuate
You will deliver a speech (5 to 6 minutes) urging your listeners to take action (buy a product,
read a book, watch a particular television program or movie, visit a tourist location, contribute
to a cause, visit a Web address, etc.).
Topic: Find an advertisement in a recent issue of the New York Times where two criteria are
met: (1) The reader is urged to take action: purchase a product, attend a movie or an event, visit
a tourist location, contribute to a cause, visit a Web address, etc.; (2) You believe that the action
sought by the advertisement is worthy of your listeners’ consideration. You should view the NYT
advertisement as a beginning point in the development of your speech; feel free to adapt your
topic to the specific needs of your immediate audience (Baylor students in your BIC 1413
section. Aristotle ought to be instructive here.)
Essay 3: Your Definition of Rhetoric
In an 8-page essay, you will write and defend your own definition of rhetoric. You will answer
the question, “What is rhetoric?” This defense will include materials and sources from across the
semester and you are required to use readings from each unit to make your argument. Once you
have articulated this idea of what rhetoric is, you will apply that definition and create a
framework with you can write a rhetorical analysis of a current event.
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New York Times Assignments: You will choose articles from the NYT for each of these
assignments. We will provide you with assignment prompts for each, but you will be
responsible for summarizing the articles and relating the articles to the themes provided within
the assignment sheet we provide you.
Class Participation/Daily Work: Points based on your instructor’s assessment of your
contribution to class discussions. This grade may also reflect specific assignments designed and
given by your individual instructor.
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BIC 1413 WORLD OF RHETORIC I: WRITING AND SPEAKING
SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS
IMPORTANT: The following schedule provides you with a tentative outline of the
assignments planned for this unit. However, since this is a writing course, building on a
sequence of skills is essential. For this reason, we may spend more or less time on the topics
listed below as needed, and I may modify assignments from time to time. Each course section is
different, so our class may devote more or less attention to some things than another class does.
Using this approach allows the Writing and Speaking faculty to tailor the course in order to meet
the needs of each individual class. Therefore, if you have questions about the course, you need
to ask me – not someone who is in another section!
A final note: All Video Modules must be completed by Tuesday’s class meeting,
along with the assigned readings for that day.
World of Rhetoric I
Spring Schedule 2021
Week 1
Video Modules:
Protopublic & Deliberation
Assignments:
Introduction videos, policy/syllabus quiz
Tuesday (1/19-1/21):
Read Introduction to Perry and Walden
Textbook
Thursday (1/21):
Stasis in Space Reading
Week 2
Video Modules:
The True, The Good, and The Beautiful
Assignments:
Tuesday (1/26):
Gorgias, pp. 3-21.
Thursday (1/28):
Read Gorgias, pp. 22-49.
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Week 3
Video Modules:
Parrhesia and truthfulness
Assignments:
Tuesday (2/2):
Read Gorgias, pp. 50-80.
Thursday (2/4):
Read Gorgias, pp. 81-107
Week 4
Video Modules:
Epistemic Rhetoric and teaching community;
Introduction to Essay II
Assignments:
NYT I Due
Tuesday (2/9):
Douglass, “What to the Slave is the 4th of
July?”
Thursday (2/11):
Read Nehamas and Woodruff introduction
and pp. 1-29 of Phaedrus
Week 5
Video Modules:
Kairos and truth to power; Introduction to
Speech I
Assignments:
Speech I Outline Complete Draft Due.
Tuesday (2/16):
Phaedrus pp. 29-52
Thursday (2/18):
Phaedrus pp. 53-86
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Week 6
Video Modules:
Peer Review Tips and Best Practices
Assignments:
Upload Rough Draft of Essay I
Tuesday (2/23):
Peer Review
Thursday (2/25):
Workshop
Week 7
Video Modules:
Public Speaking Tips and Presentation Primer
Assignments:
Essay 1 Due
ALL Speech I Final Outlines Due.
Tuesday (3/2):
Speech I, Day 1
Thursday (3/4):
Speech I, Day 2
Week 8
Video Modules:
Probabilities and Empathetic Audience
Analysis; Introduction to Speech II
Assignments:
Speech II Outline Complete Draft Due on
Canvas.
Tuesday (3/9):
Aristotle Reading
(Speech I Spillover, if necessary)
Thursday (3/11):
Aristotle Reading and Carl Rogers Reading
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Week 9
Video Modules:
The Self/Other relationship; Introduction to
Essay 2
Assignments:
Tuesday (3/16):
Buber Reading
Thursday (3/18):
Edwin Black Reading
Week 10
Video Modules:
Public Speaking Tips and thinking about
persuasion
Assignments:
ALL Speech II Final Outlines Due.
Tuesday (3/23):
Speech II
Thursday (3/25):
Speech II
Week 11
Video Modules:
Writing About Self and Others
Assignments:
NYT 2 Due
Tuesday (3/30):
Speech II
Thursday (4/1):
Essay II Workshop
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Week 12
Video Modules:
The Rhetorical Situation
Assignments:
Rough Draft of Essay II upload
Tuesday (4/6):
Essay II Peer Review
Thursday (4/8):
Read introduction to Unit 3 in textbook;
Introduce Essay 3
Read Bitzer and Vatz selections in textbook
Week 13
Video Modules:
Philosophy and Rhetoric
Assignments:
Tuesday (4/13):
Burke AND “Hunting and Heritage”
Readings
Thursday (4/15):
Schiappa Reading
Week 14
Video Modules:
Definitional Rhetoric
Assignments:
Tuesday (4/20):
Bring to Class for Workshop: Essay 3 Part I
and Prewriting Questions
Thursday (4/22):
Thanksgiving
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