Richard Weaver
From RhetorClick
Contents |
Biography
Background
Archconservative from the south, in the eponymously named Weaverville, his family was part of high society. Sharron Crowley’s book (see "Opposition" section below) evaluates Weaver’s ideology as it affects his theory of rhetoric. Crowley claims that Weaver thought the civil upheaval and development (social equality) was a threat to the old structure of society.
Weaver’s ideology, according to Crowley, assumed a hierarchy of culture. He was an apologist for the old South; things were better when social mobility was stagnant. He is sometimes called a “Paleo-conservative” and a reactionary, or someone who reacts against other people upsetting the way he thinks the way the world should be.
Our society’s current ideology, according to Weaver, makes us fragmented and subject to manipulation. Weaver despised propaganda and advertisement, claiming that we have no more honor or chivalry, and that we have become so wedded to scientific and technological advancements that we have become too individualistic.
Further Biographic Information
Article Summaries
Weaver, Richard "The Cultural Role of Rhetoric
Weaver is arguing against dialectic use in our society, calling for a revival of rhetoric. He claims that human culture (the values and beliefs of a people who are bound together by tradition, lived experience, and a shared history) will experience a state of social paralysis if dialectic is allowed to dominate rhetoric.
Additional Works/Publications
Books
Books in bold are still in print.
- 1948. Ideas Have Consequences. Univ. of Chicago Press.
- 1985 (1953). The Ethics of Rhetoric. Davis CA: Hermagoras Press.
- 1967 (1957). Rhetoric and Composition, 2nd ed. of Composition: A Course in Reading and Writing. Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.
- 1995 (1964). Visions of Order The Cultural Crisis of Our Time. Bryn Mawr PA: ISI Press.
- 1965. Life without Prejudice and Other Essays. Chicago: Henry Regnery.
- 1989 (1968). The Southern Tradition at Bay. Core, George, and Bradford, M.E., eds. Washington DC: Regnery Gateway.
- 1970. Language is Sermonic: R. M. Weaver on the Nature of Rhetoric, Johannesen, R., Strickland, R., and Eubanks, R.T., eds. Louisiana State Univ. Press.
- 1987. The Southern Essays of Richard M. Weaver. Curtis, G. M. III, and Thompson, James J. Jr., eds. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund.
Articles/Essays
- Weaver, Richard M., "Address to Family Meeting," August 10, 1950, in Pearl M. Weaver,The Tribe of Jacob: The Descendants of the Reverend Jacob Weaver of Reems Creek, North Carolina, 1786-1868 and Elizabeth Siler Weaver. 114.
- ------, 2001, "Language is Sermonic" from The Rhetorical Tradition, 2nd ed. Bizzell, P. & B. Herzber, eds. Bedford Books: 1351-1360.
- In addition to his books, Weaver published 61 book reviews, 3 pamphlets with the ISI Press, and 35 articles, including 4 in the Georgia Review, 4 in Modern Age, 6 in National Review, and 4 in the Sewanee Review:
1963, "Two Types of American Individualism," Modern Age: 119-35.
Further Readings
- Bliese, John. "Richard M. Weaver And The Rhetorical Of A Lost Cause." RSQ: Rhetoric Society Quarterly 19.4 (1989): 313-325. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 21 Mar. 2012.
- Jacobi, Martin J., and Bernard K. Duffy. "A Comprehensive Bibliography Of Works By And About Richard M. Weaver." RSQ: Rhetoric Society Quarterly 25.(1995): 258-273. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 21 Mar. 2012.
- Johannesen, Richard L. "A Reconsideration Of Richard M. Weaver's Platonic Idealism." RSQ: Rhetoric Society Quarterly 21.2 (1991): 1-10. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 21 Mar. 2012.
- Payne, Melinda A., Suzanne M. Ratchford, and Lillian N. Wooley. "Richard M. Weaver: A Bibliographic Essay." RSQ: Rhetoric Society Quarterly 19.4 (1989): 327-332. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 21 Mar. 2012.
Other Scholarly Views
Agreement
Those authors that agree with Weaver.
Opposition
Those authors that disagree with Weaver.
- Crowley, Sharon. "When Ideology Motivates Theory: The Case of the Man from Weaverville." Rhetoric Review. 20.1/2 (2001):66-93.
This is a must-read for anyone reading or working with Weaver.
