The LLED Research Seminar Series resumes for 2015!
Date: Thursday, January 29, 2015
Time: 12:30-1:30 pm
Location: Digital Literacy Centre
Title: Rhetorical genre theory: Discourse as social action
Presenter: Anthony Paré
Abstract: This presentation will offer an introduction to rhetorical genre theory (RGT) by describing its origins, its key terms, and the type of research questions it raises. Although RGT has affinities with other contemporary genre theories, it differs in one crucial way: it is primarily a sociocultural theory. As a result, RGT takes a broad view of discourse to consider not only texts but also the situations in which they arise, the relationships created by and through them, the social actions they perform, and the implicit and explicit regulations governing their production. True to its roots in classical rhetoric, RGT is interested in how social motives shape the form and function of discourse. And sensitive to the power of discourse, RGT is curious about why and for whom certain discursive forms and practices become regulated and habitual.
All welcome! Feel free to bring your lunch.
