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D.K.
Seaman Chair in Communication
COURSE
& PROGRAM INFORMATION FOR UNDERGRADUATES
COURSE & PROGRAM
INFORMATION
FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS
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a message to:
Dr. Jennifer MacLennan, D.K.
Seaman Chair in Professional and Technical Communication and
Academic Director of the Graham Centre
Burton Urquhart, Instructor and
Program Administrator for the Graham Centre
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Current Graduate Projects
in Rhetoric
and Professional
Communication
Index
Introduction
Project
Abstracts
Read abstracts for
the
unique and innovative research projects my students are working on.
With
a userid and password, you can open an MS Word copy of the full
proposal for each one.
Graduate
Courses
Along with a
number
of courses in Religious Studies, Drama, Commerce, Sociology, Native
Studies,
Law, and Anthropology, Interdisciplinary students in rhetoric have the
opportunity
to take a number of courses in the discipline. This link takes you to
the
list of these courses.
Introduction
Three MA students and one PhD student are currently enrolled in
graduate programmes in rhetoric
and
communication through the Graham Centre; a fifth is about to start her
PhD through the university's Special Case option, and three more have
already completed MA degrees. Their
profiles,
and their programmes, are quite varied, and indicate how diverse the
study
of rhetorical communication can be. Their project proposals, shown
below,
deal with very different aspects of rhetorical communication, as
you
will see.
If you are considering graduate study in rhetoric and
communication,
you may wish to study the proposals; you can also read more about
what's involved
in doing graduate work in rhetoric at U of Saskatchewan by
clicking here.
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Abstracts of Graduate
Projects
in Rhetoric and Communication
Megan Huston, "Crime Scene
Profiling as Rhetorical Analysis: An
Application of the
Dramatistic Pentad."
Huston (BA, U of Lethbridge, 1999; MA U of Saskatchewan 2002) came to
the
U of Saskatchewan with an undergraduate concentration in rhetoric and
several
conference papers to her credit. Huston's original project was to have
focused
on mediation as a communication process; her revised project, defended
in
November 2001, involved an analysis of the rhetorical foundations of
the
technique of crime scene profiling, using Kenneth Burke's theory of
dramatism.
Huston has since completed a law degree, and is practising law in
Calgary.
Brief Description of the Proposed
Research
My project, entitled Crime Scene Profiling as Rhetorical
Analysis,
will treat the technique of criminal profiling, a system
developed in
the 1980s by the FBI’s Behavourial Sciences Unit. I propose to show
that
profiling, as a system of interpreting the symbolic "text" of the crime
scene
for evidence of the criminal's personality, is essentially a rhetorical
method
that employs the elements and ratios of Burke’s dramatistic pentad.
Central
to Burke’s conception of human relations as a drama is the
"principle...
that the nature of acts and agents [will] be consistent with the
scene."
As my analysis will reveal, this same concept of kairos informs
the
effective use of profiling techniques in the solving of baffling and
brutal crimes .Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires userid and
password).
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Burton
Urquhart, "Professional Communication Strategies for the
Technical
Workplace: A Situational Analysis and Practical Handbook."
Urquhart (BA, U of Lethbridge, 1999; MA U of Saskatchewan 2006),
like Huston, came to the U
of
Saskatchewan with an undergraduate concentration in rhetoric and
several conference
papers to his credit. Urquhart's project works with theoretical models
from Lloyd Bitzer, Wayne C. Booth, Kenneth Burke and Donald Schon as a
means of understanding the
communicative
demands of the technical workplace, and includes a brief handbook for
students making technical presentations. Urquhart is now a full-time
Communication Instructor in the Graham Centre for the Study of
Communication, where he teaches Oral and Written Communication,
Rhetoric: Theory and
Practice
of Persuasion, and Oral
Rhetoric: Theory and Practice.
Brief Description of the Proposed
Research
The core of my proposed Interdisciplinary Studies MA programme is
rhetoric
and professional communication, specifically the ways in which
theoretical
models can be used to enhance both the understanding and the practice
of communication.
Although there are numerous programs in the US which allow for this
intersection
of disciplines, there are no programs in Canada as yet that combine
rhetoric
with the study of technical communication. A
Interdisciplinary
MA programme will allow me to combine my study of rhetoric and
communication
theory with an understanding of the communicative demands of a
technical
environment such as engineering.Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires userid and
password).
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Laura
Patterson, "This Hour Has 22 Minutes and the
Art of Resistance: A Rhetorical Analysis of Canadian Cultural
Anti-Language."
Patterson (BA, U of Saskatchewan, 2001; MA U of Saskatchewan
2006) took two intensive
courses
in rhetoric as part of her undergraduate degree before embarking on the
MA. Her interest in the
rhetoric
of Canadian cultural discourse preceded her MA studies, and she had
already presented a conference paper on the debate surrounding the
Robert
Latimer
murder case before she entered graduate study. During her time in the
MA programme, she presented several conference papers
based
on her thesis research.
Brief Description of the Proposed
Research
My proposed area of study is Rhetoric, Culture, and Popular
Media. I am particularly interested in how a marginalized culture
uses its popular
discourse as a way of establishing and maintaining a sense of cultural
distinctiveness
in face of overwhelming external (in this case American)
influences.
My project will address this question through an examination of the
award-winning
satirical television series This Hour Has 22 Minutes as an
example
of what Norman Fairclough calls the "anti-language" of Canadian
cultural
resistance.Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires userid and
password).
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Jeanie Wills,
"Aspects
of
the Sacred: The Rhetoric of Print Adverting"
Wills (BA, U of Saskatchewan 1996; MA U of Saskatchewan 2002) spent
nearly
ten years in the broadcasting industry, first as a copywriter and later
as
Manager of the Creative Department for radio station CJJW in Saskatoon
before
returning to university as an adult student. Since 1996, she has taught
a
broad spectrum of courses in communication and English, and is
currently
Assistant Professor of Communication and Rhetoric in the Graham Centre
for the Study of Communication. At the time of her enrollment in the
PhD programme, Wills had alreadycompleted
two graduate courses in rhetoric and communication, and presented three
conference
papers, including one that uses pentadic criticism to analyse the
motives
of Desdemona in Shakespeare's play Othello. She continues to
present her research at annual conferences and has just published
a paper on the rhetoric of Jim Pankiw.
Brief Description of the Proposed
Research
My PhD project will be a humanistic study of socio-religious elements
in
contemporary advertising. It will consider verbal and nonverbal
components
from both print and electronic media sources, using the methods and
perspectives
of rhetorical analysis, principally the theory of Kenneth Burke. I plan
to
show that advertising campaigns consistently draw on a common fund of
symbols
to persuade consumers to consume, not just a particular product but as
a
way of life.Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires userid and
password).
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Rebekah
Bennetch, "The Gospel According to Glamour: A Rhetorical Analysis of Revolve: The Complete New Testament"
Bennetch, (BA, Armstrong
Atlantic State University, Savannah,
GA, 2002), got hooked on rhetoric after taking her first course in the
subject during her undergraduate degree in English. Bennetch's
primary interests is in rhetoric and popular culture, which she plans
to continue studying at
the PhD level. As part of her MA experience, Bennetch has already
presented
a conference paper based on her thesis research. Bennetch is currently
employed full time as an Instructor of Communication in the Graham
Centre for the Study of Communication.
Brief Description of the
Proposed
Research
My project will centre on a
recent version of the New Testament,
entitled Revolve: The Complete
New Testament. This popular
Bible is published
in a magazine format, and is specifically marketed to young girls,
using
the techniques of a fashion magazine to appeal to its audience. While Revolve
does include the entire New Testament, integrated through the text are
additional
features commonly found in a fashion magazine; a few of these items
include
quizzes, beauty tips, questions-and-answers, and special segments on
"guys
speaking out" on various issues. Revolve thus represents a
cross-pollination
of religion and pop culture. I hope to show that the primary message in
this
discourse is one of consumption rather than spirituality, and that, far
from
using commercial appeals to communicate religious content, the magazine
uses
an overlay of religious themes to purvey an essentially commercial
message. Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires userid and
password).
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Julian
Demkiw, "Taking Rhetoric to Work: A Dramatistic Analysis of
Organizational
Dynamics in The Office"
Demkiw (BE, Electrical
Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, 1999),
became interested in studying communication partly as a result of an
active
involvement in student government. After graduation, while working for
the
Office of University Advancement, he took his first course in rhetoric,
and
has since completed several more, one of which produced a successful
conference
paper that was later published. Demkiw's primary interests is in
rhetoric
and organizational communication, which he hopes will lead to a career
in
communication consulting.
Brief Description of the
Proposed
Research
I am interested in exploring
the ways in which a rhetorical approach
can
shed new light on the interpersonal and social identifications that
influence
human motivation and interaction in an organizational setting, and I
have
chosen to focus on the acclaimed BBC programme The Office,
described
as a “satire of TV's ubiquitous fly-on-the-wall documentary . . . [that
dramatizes]
the easily recognisable eccentricities, annoyances and petty rivalries
of
office life.” The Office is a fictional drama, but what
makes it important
as a rhetorical object is its function as part of what interpreters of
the
great rhetorical theorist Kenneth Burke have called “the drama of human
relations.”
It is my belief that, combined with traditional social-scientific
approaches to organizational development, rhetorical analysis will
provide greater insight into how organizations function by focusing on
the ways in which the people within them interact with each other and
with the organizational structure. Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires userid and
password).
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Janelle Hutchinson,
"Goading, In the
Spirit of Hierarchy: Exigence, Audience,
and the Maclean’s University Rankings"
Hutchinson holds
two science degrees from the University of Saskatchewan (a BE in
Agricultural and BioResource Engineering and a BSc in MicroBiology).
She is currently employed as an Assistant Registrar for the University,
and became interested in rhetoric after teaching our required
undergraduate course in Oral and Written Communication for engineers,
which led her to join our Rhetoric Study Group before embarking on her
formal programme in the fall of 2005.
Brief
Description of the Proposed Research
I am interested in the
rhetorical dimensions and impetus of
the annual Maclean’s University Rankings, which are released to the
public in November of each year – much to the glee, anxiety, or despair
of university administrations across Canada. The survey has been
criticized since its inception as a meaningless ratings game, but the
“Rankings” issue has become the most popular of the Maclean’s editorial
year, turning it into a rhetorical exigence that university
administrations seem unable to ignore. The rankings are compiled and
published by an independent third party (Maclean’s magazine), yet
universities readily supply all required statistical data to allow the
comparison (indeed diverting more and more resources to this
effort). Despite their best efforts, however, a hierarchy can be
a slippery slope, and even those at the summit are acutely aware that
there is only one remaining direction. With resources scarce at most
Canadian universities, many inside the institutions have begun to
question the motivation for continuing the exercise, given the
expenditure of resources required. The purpose of my project is to
examine the forces that have transformed a magazine’s marketing gesture
into a rhetorical exigence so powerful that university administrations
seem unwilling to abandon what has turned out to be an increasingly
costly exercise whose worth is still unclear. .Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires userid and
password).
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Tess
Laidlaw, "Journaling the Plague Years: A Rhetorical
Analysis of Media Coverage of the Avian Influenza H5N1 Threat"
Laidlaw holds a master's degree in journalism and an undergraduate
degree in biology, and currently works as a Communication Officer for
the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), where she sees
first hand the challenges and pitfalls of communicating scientific
information to the public. Prior to embarking on her PhD programme in
the spring of 2007, Laidlaw completed RCM (formerly GE) 498 and a
graduate seminar in Rhetorical Interpretation.
Brief
Description of the Proposed Research
As science
and technology
increasingly influence day-to-day life, scientific “illiteracy” seems
to be
increasingly widespread, with greater estrangement between experts and
the
public. As a result of this reliance, the mass media shape public
understanding
– and thus public policy and actions – to a startling degree. But since
media
coverage of any issue is driven by concerns other than scientific
precision or
educational value, the way in which scientific subjects are treated in
the
media may be heavily influenced by pressures extraneous to the science
itself
or even to the public interest. This being the case, how well are we
served,
both as researchers and as members of the public, by this status quo? My PhD project will attempt to answer this question
through a case study of media coverage, specifically of avian influenza
H5N1. I
propose to conduct a textual analysis of media portrayals of the avian
influenza H5N1 virus threat, from the time of its first appearance
until
experts began to warn that the threat was being overblown, a period of
approximately three years. In conducting my analysis, I will draw upon
the
World Health Organization (WHO) report Outbreak Communications,
developed
predominantly by scientists and medical personnel to guide
communication with
the public in life-and-death situations.
Download
a copy of the complete project proposal in MS Word (requires user id
and password). top |
