RMS
What we Study
Courses
Minor and Major Faculty
Contests
Forensics
Team
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RMS: What we Study |
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The Importance of Rhetoric and
Film Studies in the Liberal Arts College What does the Study of Rhetoric and Film Studies do
for me? An
answer to a good question
Christine Delicata has written
on the Rocky Horror Picture show as altering the musical genre in her work
toward an RMS major.
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The department of Rhetoric
and Media Studies is a multidisciplinary program that enriches understanding
of the complexity of contemporary communication by providing a solid
grounding in the theory, history, production, interpretation, and criticism
of a wide variety of written, oral, visual and filmic texts. We focus on the
uses of language and image to characterize social reality, to debate and
confront controversies, and to aid in the transformation of social
institutions. Our department has four
primary components. First, we offer courses in the study and practice of public
presentation of speeches including the Fundamentals of Public Speaking. Second, we offer study of Rhetorical Theory and Public Argument in
courses like Argumentation in the Law and Politics, Persuasion and Social
Movements, Rhetoric and Film Criticism, and African American Protest
Rhetoric. Third, we offer courses in the production, study, and criticism of media
such as film and television. Examining actors, filmmakers, genres, major
movements, these courses provide an in-depth study of the visual medium. Fourth, we offer a comprehensive forensic program. Students can
participate in Parliamentary debate, Extemporaneous and Impromptu Speaking,
and Policy Debate. Our department's approach
toward Rhetoric and Media Studies involves the study of the use of symbols in
speeches, written texts, film, and any form of communication. We examine the
quality of reason giving in a speech by George Bush, examine films such as
Blade Runner for what it says about being human in our society, evaluate
gender representations in sexual harassment disputes, critique arguments
presented by television ads advocating harsher prison sentences, evaluate the
effectiveness of civil rights protesters, and explicate the history of the rhetoric
of peace movements in the United States. In sum, the Rhetoric and Media
Studies department has as its primary goal the evaluation of communication in
all of its diverse formats. Samples of Student Work Argument in the Law Court Decisions |
Questions
should be directed to Jim Hanson at hansonjb@whitman.edu