Extensions of the Burkeian System

Focuses criticism upon the writings of Kenneth Burke

Extensions of the Burkeian System constitutes one of the first projects to meet the requirements Burke has established for his operation benchmark. This volume its origins in the scholarly contributions of Kenneth Burke. All of the authors of the chapters in this volume adopt stances that defer to Burke’s initial contributions, ultimately casting their work as extensions of ideas and claims posited by Burke. Yet, all of the authors also make significant departures from positions Burke has articulated. The range of these reactions varies tremendously. Several of the authors cast their positions as augmentations. They offer supplements to Burke's claims that constitute logical additions to Burke's initial observations, but even these authors provide adjustments to the Burkeian system that make a difference in how the system is per­ceived and understood. Other essays are cast in a more challenging mode, arguing explicitly for alternative viewpoints. Displeased with Burke's analysis at a given point for one reason or another, they posit positions different than those advanced by Burke.
 

Extensions of the Burkeian System focuses upon the writings of Kenneth Burke, who has been hailed as one of the leading U.S. critics in the second half of the 20th century. Kenneth Burke's writings now span a 70-year period. During this period he has developed a system for understanding and critically responding to human communication systems, from literary and artistic works to historical and cultural eras, to entire sociopolitical and technological systems. In 1990, Burke called for a reexamination of his theoretical and critical system. Holding that he might explain a concept in one fashion, Burke likewise recognized that "you may do more in the same direction, or you may change it in the reverse direction, or you may take it in another direction". Calling for the creation of "operation benchmark", Burke invited others to provide extensions of his system. This volume finds its origins in the scholarly contributions of Kenneth Burke and includes an original essay written by Burke some 50 years ago that has never previously been published. This essay provides an important link in the evolution of Burke's system of thought. All of the contributors adopt stances that defer to Burke's contributions, ultimately casting their works as extensions of ideas and claims posited by Burke. Nevertheless, all of the authors also make significant departures from positions Burke has articulated. The range of these reactions varies tremendously. In chapters written by some of the leading communication scholars in the United States, some have returned to Burke himself, focused upon his life, and offered new insights into the forces motivating Burke and the products Burke has generated. Others havereinvestigated and provided extensions of specific Burkeian methods, including his notions of media, the negative, and representative anecdote. Others recast Burke's endeavors in a more political context, focusing upon technology as an anti-humanistic and anti-ecological force. The final chapters of this book reconsider the philosophical underpinnings of the Burkeian system. While diverse in the selection of topics, this volume provides a renewed emphasis on and reexamination of the definitional, applied, methodological, theoretical, and philosophical levels that the Burkeian system affects.