Abstract
Abstract: This essay argues for greater attention to the concept of "occasion" in rhetorical theories of narrative. Although occasion is routinely recognized as an element of the rhetorical situation, it is rarely given attention in narrative theory outside of instances of character narration. I examine how the occasion of the book itself can be theorized. Drawing on Katra Byram's 2022 essay "Narrative as Social Action," I examine the way Ling Ma draws attention to publishing logistics in her novel Severance to show that book publication itself can be understood as constructing an occasion. Ma offers a model that balances the material circumstances of the book itself against the imaginary relationships we project onto the book and the creative force behind the work. This essay concludes by arguing that this kind of occasion has application to a wide variety of qualities associated with the work's paratext.
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