Transforming English Studies: New Voices in an Emerging Genre (Lauer Series in Rhetoric and Composition)

TRANSFORMING ENGLISH STUDIES: NEW VOICES IN AN EMERGING GENRE Is a concerned response to the disciplinary crises-both real and imagined-that threaten the viability of contemporary English Studies. These crises have been variously cited as the lack of employment prospects for English Studies PhDs, the decline in English majors, the corporatization of the university, the crunch in academic publishing, widespread budget cutbacks, the varying perceptions of the value of scholarly work, and the field's inequitable labor practices. Inspired by the work of Stephen North, TRANSFORMING ENGLISH STUDIES contributes to a new and emerging genre of English Studies scholarship: the genre of self-reflexive disciplinary critique. TRANSFORMING ENGLISH STUDIES turns our attention to the field itself as an object of study and provides what Gary A. Olson calls in his forward to this book a "self-conscious, meta-level examination of the discipline qua discipline." Bringing together scholars from multiple fields, TRANSFORMING ENGLISH STUDIES offers polyvocal and transformative approaches to field-wide reform that go beyond preserving the disciplinary status quo. Instead, the contributors to this collection are distinguished by their insightful interrogation of the discipline's seemingly mundane assumptions, their respect for how local contexts influence reform, and their acknowledgement of the diversity of our (inter)discipline. LAUER SERIES IN RHETORIC AND COMPOSITION Edited by Catherine Hobbs, Patricia Sullivan, Thomas Rickert, and Jennifer Bay LORI OSTERGAARD is an assistant professor of writing and rhetoric at Oakland University. Her scholarly interests include the history of composition and writing program administration. JEFF LUDWIG is a writing instructor at the University of Denver, specializing in modernist American literature, curricular reform in English Studies, and writing across the curriculum. JIM NUGENT is an assistant professor of writing and rhetoric at Oakland University. His research interests include neosophistic rhetorical theory, the teaching of technical writing, and certificate programs in technical communication.