Modern University Textbooks on Rhetoric: Problems, Composition, Text

Abstract

The article raises the issue of the content of a textbook on rhetoric, analyzes the available options for constructing such a textbook. The author concludes that most often the content of modern textbooks does not correspond to the classical idea of the concept of rhetoric, but duplicates various humanitarian subjects. The reason for this state of affairs is the lack of the necessary number of specialists in rhetoric. If a philologist is assigned to teach rhetoric, classes are usually filled with tasks on the culture of speech. If rhetoric is transferred to specialized departments (legal, economic, etc.), it is replaced by an analysis of certain aspects of future activities (and not speech) of students. If the actors take up the rhetoric, all its content is reduced to the stage of utterance. An important indicator of an unprofessional approach to rhetoric in all such situations is the availability of tasks on aspects not considered in the theoretical part of the relevant paragraph, as well as the replacement of a systematic and consistent presentation of the material with all kinds of “tips” and “memos”. A professional textbook is always based on a single scientific concept, which is reflected both in the content (the author is not distracted by the message of irrelevant information) and in the composition (the information is arranged in a natural logical sequence). The second feature of such a textbook is a strict orientation to a certain audience: the author consciously selects information, and also offers exercises and tasks that help to form professionally significant skills of the addressee. Textbooks addressed to representatives of specific professions necessarily contain a rhetorical analysis of all professionally significant situations and specific recommendations for constructing statements in professionally significant genres.