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Rhetorical "Mosaicism" and Intractable Conflict: George W. Bush on Stem Cells

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Date Issued:
2007
Abstract/Description:
President Bush's 2001 speech on stem cell research showed unusual intermixing of rhetorical bits from past arguments of proponents and opponents, suggesting that such mixing is a distinct rhetorical strategy. Analyses revealed two communities that had engaged each other over reproductive biology issues for decades, developing distinct vocabularies and argumentative patterns in that interaction. The speech mixed fragments ofthese usages. Traditional textual analyses and analyses ofthe mixing itself showed that the mixing seems to reinforce traditional approaches to divided audiences by opening up many possibilities for the communities to draw different meanings from what is said. Analyses of responses to the speech showed such split understandings, and followup analyses to 2007 suggest that the speech helped freeze the character of the debate in the form Bush gave it. Mixing is a viable rhetorical strategy to help manage intractable issues with deeply divided audiences.
Title: Rhetorical "Mosaicism" and Intractable Conflict: George W. Bush on Stem Cells.
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Name(s): Brooten, Gary
Marin, Noemi, Thesis advisor
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Date Created: 2007
Date Issued: 2007
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 160 p.
Language(s): English
Abstract/Description: President Bush's 2001 speech on stem cell research showed unusual intermixing of rhetorical bits from past arguments of proponents and opponents, suggesting that such mixing is a distinct rhetorical strategy. Analyses revealed two communities that had engaged each other over reproductive biology issues for decades, developing distinct vocabularies and argumentative patterns in that interaction. The speech mixed fragments ofthese usages. Traditional textual analyses and analyses ofthe mixing itself showed that the mixing seems to reinforce traditional approaches to divided audiences by opening up many possibilities for the communities to draw different meanings from what is said. Analyses of responses to the speech showed such split understandings, and followup analyses to 2007 suggest that the speech helped freeze the character of the debate in the form Bush gave it. Mixing is a viable rhetorical strategy to help manage intractable issues with deeply divided audiences.
Identifier: FA00000902 (IID)
Degree granted: Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2007.
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Subject(s): Bush, George W.--(George Walker),--1946---Political and social views.
Medical genetics--Research--Moral and ethical aspects.
Stem cells--Research--Moral and ethical aspects.
Rhetorical criticism.
Mosaicism.
Developmental genetics--Moral and ethical aspects.
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Sublocation: Digital Library
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00000902
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.