Communication Criticism

Developing Your Critical Powers

Jodi R. Cohen

• Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc
• Year: 1998
• Print ISBN:
  9780761906308
  9780761906292
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781452250427
• Topic: Languages & Linguistics
• Subtopic: Communication Studies
• Index: Languages & Linguistics

Designed specifically for noncommunication scholars, Communication Criticism is an informally written, practical guide about how to think, how to communicate effectively, and how to filter meaning out of the swarm of communication that seeks our attention daily. Undergraduates will learn how understanding the fundamental principles of communication helps them judge the potential effectiveness, effects, truths, and ethics of all types of communication from classical "soapbox speeches" to reading a magazine, talking to a boy/girlfriend, watching court proceedings, or watching the TV news. In a format similar to most public speaking courses, author Jodi R. Cohen introduces classical theories of rhetoric at the beginning of each chapter, then expands the discussion with contemporary postmodern theories, touching on concerns with aesthetics and cultural bias as well. Question-and-answer sections in each chapter and many specific, down-to-earth examples will attract and encourage students to harness the power of communication that shapes who we are, what we know, and what we do. A highly practical resource, Communication Criticism is the ideal for professionals in popular culture, media studies, mass communication, and film studies.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Contents
• Series Editor's Introduction
• Preface: Author's Notes on the Philosophy and Design of the Book
• Unit I - An Introduction to Communication and Criticism
• Chapter 1 - The Need to Think Critically about Communication
• Chapter 2 - How to Think Critically about Communication
• Unit II - Critical Concepts That Focus on Language
• Chapter 3 - Language as Style
• Chapter 4 - Language as Sign Systems
• Chapter 5 - Language as Metaphor
• Unit III - Critical Concepts That Focus on Structure
• Chapter 6 - Structure as Organization
• Chapter 7 - Structure as Editing Images
• Chapter 8 - Structure as Narrative
• Chapter 9 - Structure as Drama
• Unit IV - Critical Concepts That Focus on Reasoning
• Chapter 10 - Reasoning as Rhetorical Argument
• Chapter 11 - Reasoning as Field-Dependent Argument
• Chapter 12 - Reasoning as Narrative
• Unit V - Critical Concepts That Focus on Character
• Chapter 13 - Character as Ethos
• Chapter 14 - Character as the Second Persona
• Chapter 15 - Character as Identification
• Unit VI - Critical Concepts That Focus on Emotion
• Chapter 16 - Emotion as Pathos
• Chapter 17 - Emotion as Desire
• Unit VII - Developing Critical Powers
• Chapter 18 - Critical Powers Over Who We are, What We Know, and What We do
• Glossary of Key Concepts
• Index
• About the Author