Invitational Rhetoric Research Articles

Fusing horizons: Standpoint hermeneutics and invitational rhetoric

This essay emends Foss, Foss, and Griffin's invitational rhetoric to strenghten its philosophical undergirdings and release it from unfounded criticism. Standpoint hermeneutical rhetoric is the framework offered to position the theory more solidly in the canon. Three strategic moves include discovering and revising its epistemological stance to reflect Lorraine Code's concepts of knowing others and second personhood; connecting Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics to rhetoric; and using Gadamer's emphasis on position and historicity to develop the connection to feminist standpoint theory. Conclusions point toward the implications of invitational rhetoric as dialogue linked to practical application in public communication and pedagogy.

Inviting Constructive Argument

The essay develops a constructive notion of argument informed by Foss and Griffin's invitational rhetoric, responding to invitational rhetoric's critics and illustrating how diverse literatures in communication studies converge to provide a more fruitful notion of argument that values “getting things done” over “being right,” providing a more practical approach to teaching argument. Highlighting how convergence between our discipline's humanistic and social scientific traditions produces practical theory, the essay illustrates the centrality of communication studies.

Beyond persuasion: A proposal for an invitational rhetoric

Most traditional rhetorical theories reflect a patriarchal bias in the positive value they accord to changing and thus dominating others. In this essay, an alternative rhetoric—invitational rhetoric—is proposed, one grounded in the feminist principles of equality, immanent value, and self‐determination. Its purpose is to offer an invitation to understanding, and its communicative modes are the offering of perspectives and the creation of the external conditions of safety, value, and freedom.