Rational Rhetoric: The Role of Science in Popular Discourse

Rational Rhetoric: The Role of Science in Popular Discourse places popular representations of science and scientific discourse under the terministic lenses of rhetorical theory, cultural studies, and language theory. David J. Tietge ranges broadly and insightfully across a wide range of scientific discourse and ideology as it is reconfigured for general consumption, in popular science writing (from Carl Sagan to Stephen Hawking and Stephen J. Gould), magazines (from Scientific American to Time and Social Text), news media (from CNN to The Discovery Channel), the public controversies over evolution, creationism, and intelligent design, and even pop psychology (Oprah, The Dr. Phil Show). The result is a tour de force reconceptualization of the enormous impact that our understanding (and misunderstanding) of science has on modern consciousness and, in turn, many of the most important issues confronting American society in an era of global warming, wars on science, and other inconvenient truths.

David Tietge is Associate Professor of English at Monmouth University, where he teaches courses in rhetorical theory, the rhetoric of science, composition pedagogy, literature, and writing.