“It is clear that situations are not always accompanied by discourse. Nor should we assume that a rhetorical address gives existence to the situation; on the contrary, it is the situation which calls the discourse into existence.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg2)
“Meaning-context is a general condition of human communication and is not synonymous with rhetorical situation. Nor do I mean merely that rhetoric occur in a setting which involves interaction of speaker, audience, subject and communicative purpose. This is too general, since many types of utterances- philosophical, scientific, poetic, and rhetorical- occur in such settings. Nor would I equate rhetorical situation with persuasive situation, which exists whenever an audience can be changed in belief or action by means of speech. Every audience at any moments is capable of beings changed in some way by speech; persuasive situation is altogether general.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 3)
“A work of rhetoric is pragmatic; it comes into existence for the sake of something beyond itself; it functions ultimately to produce action or change in the world; it performs some task. In short, rhetoric is a mode of altering reality, not by the direct application of energy to objects, but by the creation of discourse which changes reality through the mediation of thought and action.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 4)
“Let us regard rhetorical situation as a natural context of persons, events, objects, relations, and an exigence which strongly invites utterance; this invited utterance participates naturally in the situational activity, and by means of its participation with situation obtains its meaning and its rhetorical character.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 5)
“The verbal responses to the demands imposed by this situation are clearly as functional and necessary as the physical responses. Traditional theories of rhetoric have dealt with larger units of speech which come more readily under the guidance of artistic principle and method. … The leader of the fishermen finds himself obliged to speak at a given moment- to command, to supply information, to praise or blame- to respond appropriately to the situation. Clear instances of artistic rhetoric exhibit the same character: … So controlling is situation that we should consider it the very ground of rhetorical activity.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 5)
“Hence, to say that rhetoric is situational means: (1) rhetorical discourse comes into existence as a response to situation, in the same sense that an answer comes into existence in response to a question, or a solution in response to a problem; (2) a speech is given rhetorical significance as answer to as solution by the question or problem; (3) a rhetorical situation must exist as a necessary condition of rhetorical discourse, just as a question must exist as a necessary condition of an answer; (4) may questions go unanswered and many problems remain unsolved; similarly, many rhetorical situations mature and decay without giving birth to rhetorical utterance; (5)a situation is rhetorical insofar as it needs and invites discourse capable of participating with situation and thereby altering its reality;(6) discourse is rhetorical insofar as it functions (or seeks to function) as a fitting response to situation which needs and invites it. (7) Finally, the situation controls the rhetorical response in the same sense that the question controls the answer and the problem controls the solution. Not the rhetor and not persuasive intent, but the situation is the source and ground of rhetorical activity- and, I should add, of rhetorical criticism.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 6)
“Rhetorical situation may be defined as a complex of persons, events, objects, and relations presenting an actual or potential exigence which can be completely or partially removed if discourse, introduced into the situation, can so constrain human decision or action as to bring about the significant modification of the exigence. Prior to the creation and presentation of discourse there are three constituents of any rhetorical situation; the first is the exigence; the second and third are elements o the complex, namely the audience to be constrained in decision and action, and the constraints which influence the rhetor and can be brought to bear upon the audience.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 6)
“An exigence is an imperfection marked by urgency; it is a defect, an obstacle, something waiting to be done, a thing which is other than it should be.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 6)
“An exigence is rhetorical when it is capable of positive modification and when positive modification requires discourse or can be assisted by discourse.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 7)
“A rhetorical audience consists only of those persons who are capable of being influences by discourse and of being mediators of change.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 8)
“There are two main classes of constraints: (1) those originated or managed y the rhetor and his method (Aristotle called these “artistic proofs”), and (2) those other constraints, in the situation, which may be operative (Aristotle’s “inartistic proofs”). Both classes must be divided so as to separate those constrains that are proper from those that are improper.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 8)
“These three constituents – exigence, audience, constraints – comprise everything relevant in a rhetorical situation.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 8)
“Although rhetorical situation invites response, it obviously does not invite just any response. Thus the second characteristic of rhetorical situation is that it invites a fitting response, a response that fits the situation. … If it makes sense to say that situation invites a “fitting” response, then situation must somehow prescribe the response which fits. ” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 10)
“Rhetorical situations exhibit structures which are simple or complex, and more or less organized.” Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation (pg 11)
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