CCPA Midterm 2 -- Burke

Kenneth Burke Influences

World Wars, Great Depression, radicalism vs orthodoxy, Sedition Act, labor unions and marxism, and the rise of European fascism

Burke’s 1st Goal

Provide alternate principles on which to base “solutions” to social, political, and economic issues facing the world

Burke’s 2nd Goal

Create a grammar for understanding human relationships and motivations

Burke’s 3rd Goal

Create rhetoric suitable for a democratic society

Orientation

Perspectives about how the world operates stemming from experience; shapes decision-making and anticipations of what will occur

Piety

sense of “what goes with what,” organizing experiences and beliefs; stronger than ideology

Piety

Orientation leads to ____

Rituals

repetitive actions that express piety and reinforce meaning

Identification

process of connecting with others, becoming similar, and gaining consubstantiality

Division

differences that separate people

consubstantiality

shared substance; feeling of being one with others

alienation

the nature of humans to be apart from other humans

identification and division

you cannot have identification without division

common ground

identification strategy of finding something in common with someone

ritual as identification

identification through going through the same rituals, such as boulevarding or convocation

physical markers

identification through how you dress and present yourself

common enemy

identification through having a shared enemy of rival

Burke’s Definition of Man

humans are symbol-using, making, and misusing animals; inventors of the negative; detached from nature; goaded by hierarchy; and rotten with perfection

symbol-using

use of symbols; the thing that sets humans apart from other animals

symbol-making

creating layers of meaning depending on context, who, when, or how symbols are used

symbol-misusing

manipulating symbols imperfectly; our communication and ability to communicate are imperfect

inventor of the negative

humans create concepts like “no” or “not”

hierarchy

humans are driven to rank themselves socially

perfection

humans strive for perfection but never achieve it

frames

ways of interpreting and viewing the world

acceptance frame

accept the system and find your role within it; includes tragic and comic frames

rejection frame

reject the system and seek to change it

comic frame

sees people as mistaken or foolish and encourages forgiveness

tragic frame

acceptance frame that sees people as evil or criminal and emphasizes guilt and punishment

dramatism

method of analyzing human behavior through symbolic action; about understanding people

symbolic action

human behavior that has meaning beyond physical movement

Dramatism Assumption 1

all human behavior is symbolic action, not motion

Dramatism Assumption 2

language reveals motives

Dramatism Assumption 3

life is like a drama or play

Pentad

five elements used to analyze motives: act, scene, agent, agency, and purposeA

Act

what happened

scene

where and when it happeneda

agent

who performed the act

agency

how the act was done or tools used

purpose

why the act was done

ratios

relationships between two pentad elements showing influence

ratio test

if one element changes, does the other change?

Scene-Agent Ratio

the environment shapes the person

Scene-Agent Example

“I feel like a child in elementary school”

Act-Agent Ratio

the action defines the person

Act-Agent Example

“He is bad because he cheated”

Agent-Scene Ratio

the person shapes the environment

Agent-Scene Example

“The professor makes the class amazing”

Scene-Act Ratio

the setting influences the action

Scene-Act Example

“walking into a dentist office makes me nervous”

Guilt-Redemption Cycle

process explaining how humans deal with problems

Pollution

disruption or problem creating guilt

Guilt

feeling of wrongdoing or disorder

purification

attempt to remove guilt through mortification or victimage

mortification

taking responsibility for yourself

victimage

blaming someone else: “This happened because of someone else”

redemption

relief after purification; sacrificing ourselves or someone else to make us feel better

cycle nature

the guilt-redemption cycle repeats continuously

Guilt-Redemption Order

1. Pollution

2. Guilt

3. Purification

4. Redemotion

5. Start again

Rhetoric of Hitler’s Battle

Burke’s essay analyzing how Hitler persuaded people

Goal of Hitler Essay

Understand persuasion to prevent it from happening again

Inborn Dignity

Appeal to pride and superiority: “We are better than the other race”

Projection Device

blaming others for problems, such as blaming Jews for economic decline

Symbolic Rebirth

promise to restore greatness

Unifying Voice

leader speaks for the people and gains power

Commercial Use

justifying harmful actions as practical or necessary