1. Author, Gerard Hauser summarizes the basic understanding of ‘experiential language use’ in his book Introduction to Rhetorical Theory. In his explanation, Hauser offers an example of America’s language development due in part to physical encounters, as well as from our cultural orientation. Hauser explains the American understanding of ‘up, down, front and back.’ He illustrates that the American perception of these directions is merely a matter of perspective. For in reality, there is no ‘bottom’ to a ball, and there is no real ‘back’ to a tree. “Our culture makes an orientational assumption…(226)” However, America’s assumption will vary greatly from a Nigerian, South African, or Vietnamese assumption – How will understanding the basic differences in language development and use, impact the modern movement toward globalization? How does being aware of the cultural variations in language development help you to become a more active ‘global citizen’?
2. Although, opinion polls are used often, especially during election years Hauser states opinion polls can only give us responses to structural questions; “We are unable to find out whether participants were genuinely interested in the material, how much background information they may or may not have had on the subject” (94). If the information we receive from the polls is not completely authentic and lacks totality, why is public opinion polling important? Is there a way to enable discussion and depth within publics theory despite the current limitations to engage in discourse? What are the risks/challenges that may exist if we have merely opinions, but no judgment or reasoning backing the opinions of the public?
3. Although, I was emotionally touched by Dickinson’s argument to utilize rhetoric and communication in an effort to create and maintain memories of cultural identity, I am interested in his notion that an individual may find their identity within images, memories and interactions of their surrounding. Dickinson states, “Old Pasadena provides the images of comfort, community, and home necessary for the needs of identity, utilizing memory to suggest authenticity, and the attempt to stabilize, finalize and, in a most literal sense, place identity” (7). While I agree that the above mentioned characteristics aid in an individual’s creation of identity, I will argue that no matter what location geographically, emotionally, or physically a person is in, their sense of identity is constantly shifting due to experiences, their background, the people they meet, the conversations they partake in and the meaning they initiate. Do you agree or disagree? Considering the city you grew up in, or are now living in, is there a distinct, well known history, and how if any has it impacted you?
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Dickinson: Rhetoric & Cultural Identity (response to question 3)
I agree with Dickinson that in physical spatial surroundings one can find identity, but I also believe that one’s sense of personal identity is always fluid and malleable. An identity is an amalgamation of internal and external, public and private spaces that we perceive and store in our “memory place.” One place or thing cannot change an identity completely, nor can it make an identity. When Dickinson says that one can find identity in their surroundings, I think he means it is something that can build upon your identity. These memories you create from the surroundings serve the rhetorical purpose of creating and maintaining an individual sense of oneself within a larger cultural network.
Dickinson believed that the rhetorical use of memory evoked particular responses from people depending on what they associated with a place or environment. I grew up in a working class family and lived in federal housing built for World War II families for the first eighteen years of my life. I remember the cul-de-sac that my family’s home was situated in: small, woodsy, and all the homes were a sun-baked beige color. I thought everyone lived in a place like mine, so I was very happy to talk about it to classmates at school. Some of my classmates laughed at me and teased me for living “in the projects.” I didn’t understand the derogatory tone being expressed at first; I didn’t see myself living in the projects because most of the people living there seemed happy and I associated being unhappy with being poor. All the housing looked a lot alike so I had a sense of belonging and community. Being on the outside of that community I guess one could perceive it as a low-income, welfare-draining mob of refugees building up a tax burden for the more native, productive American citizen. I vaguely remember people yelling from the streets for my family to “go back to your country” or “stop stealing our jobs.” Living there I built a particular sense of identity maintained by my socioeconomic status and dialogue with white neighbors. I learned that some people will judge you by the color of your skin, the way you speak English, and not all people are nice. I also learned that through hard work one can get out of a bad place (and a bad state of mind), and with perseverance one could build character and exude integrity. Living in federal housing shaped my identity as a student as well, because I was taught at an early age that education is one of the few things in life that people can take away from you; knowledge was my power. It was living proof with the kids I grew up with. Some dropped out of middle school, joined a gang and ended up in prison by the time I graduated high school. Others stayed in school like me, and got scholarships to go to MIT and Stanford.
All achievement and recognition aside, though, I find that it is hard to negate my environment growing up as not being a part of my identity now. Dickinson said that memories are stored in places where people can enact the past. To me that means that identity is never static or unchanging. There is a core being that makes you you, but what comprises it is the gradual process of building from your life experiences, the constant reminiscence of past experiences reinventing their meaning. These life experiences in turn are stored in a way that keeps it interacting with what is happening now in your life. There is always a continuous dialogue, a rhetorical exchange that changes and shapes how you see yourself and your place in the world. This is how an identity is maintained.
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