After reading the second chapter of Ancient Rhetorics, I’d like to you reflect on the terms “kairos” and “rhetorical situation.” In your own words, explain what you think these terms mean. Then, I’d like you to apply your sense of these terms to the debate about the stress that high school students face. Based on our reading, respond to two or three of these questions: Why do you think this issue is urgent now? What communities find this issue urgent? What kinds of arguments are favored in the commentators we’ve read? What are the power dynamics involved in this debate? Which voices are being heard and which voices aren’t? What lines of argument are appropriate and which are not? As you respond to these questions, ground your discussion in the articles we’ve read, citing specific examples when you can. As you conclude your response, pick one piece and explain how its writer crafted his or her argument effectively in response to this rhetorical situation.
Post your response here as a comment before class begins on Monday. Aim for 250-350 words. I look forward to reading your response.
The second chapter is all about “kairos” and “Rhetorical situation”. Each rhetorical situation is different. The rhetorical situation consists of the time, place and relativity of the topic at hand. This is where kairos comes in. Kairos and the rhetorical situation are interrelated. Kairos is the opportune time or moment for rhetoric. This refers to the time frame of a certain issue. For example, several years ago global warming was not a very prominent or accepted problem. Today, however, many people around the world are realizing the problems and possible outcomes of global warming. This is an example of kairos. Now is an opportune moment to talk about global warming because people are realizing that it is a major problem. The rhetorical situation would be the place and time that the rhetor gives the speech or presentation about the dangers of global warming.
ReplyDeleteThese two terms can also be identified and explained by using the short readings that we have done in the past week. The stresses on high school students have become a much more interesting and prominent argument in the past few years. The pressure on high school students to go to a prestigious college is becoming greater and greater. More and more students are going to college, which is causing the work force to become more competitive. Older generations did not have this problem because not as many people went to college. This argument is an example of kairos. This issue is becoming more important because of the increasing pressure on high school students to be accepted in a highly ranked institution.
The communities that find this issue to be urgent are those with high school students or younger students. Students are one of the major contributors to this issue. They see how it is affecting them and other classmates in their schools. Teachers also see this problem. In the short video clip that we watched, we heard from both students and teachers. The teachers thought they were perpetrators solely causing the students to drown themselves in homework each night. One of the teachers said that there was no way that the curriculum given to them could be learned in one year. It was not possible, he said. This audience is well aware of the problems facing them and they want to let other parents and teachers know how these students are being affected.
Harris Cooper, the chairman of the department of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University wrote about homework’s diminishing returns. He reaches out to other teachers. He is very intelligent and informed about the problem at hand. He uses this and creates his rhetorical situation to get his argument across effectively. He speaks to the common people using common sense and also research to back up his claims. He makes reference to the National PTA and the National Education Association by saying that a child’s grade multiplied by ten should be the amount of time spent on homework per night. This is a logical argument that is made to influence teachers and he also goes on to say that more than this could effect a child in a negative way. Too much homework may actually decrease the amount of information the child acquires. Cooper uses kairos to express his opinion when he knew it was appropriate. He also used the rhetorical situation of responding to an argument to voice his position on the topic and to add a new viewpoint.
In chapter two, Sharon Crowley and Debra Hawhee delve into the meanings and use of rhetorical situations and kairos. A rhetorical situation is a specific time, place, or issue unlike any other. Kairos more specifically is the right or prime time for rhetors to engage in conversation over a specific issue. Cultural, social, political or economical events could spur a window of opportunity in which writers have an audience waiting for answers.
ReplyDeleteConnecting these terms to the current debate over the stress placed on high school students, certain factors have initiated the urgency of the matter in which rhetors can take advantage of the rhetorical situation and kairos. Recently, news reports have focused on American education ratings dropping internationally which has engaged the public attention surrounding education. Also, education came to the forefront during the 2008 presidential elections has created a perfect window of opportunity for rhetors to engage in the debate over schools and stress with an audience waiting to learn more on the subject. Rhetors have a large audience and community interested in this topic because almost all Americans are invested in the school system in some way. Parents of children have an interest because of the wellbeing of their own children while older Americans have an interest in the well being of the nation’s future. This debate however, is not of extreme urgency because it is going up against a large institution, which would be immensely difficult to amend. While rhetors put forth ideas and an audience receives them, nothing seems to be changing. While many academic voices are being heard, teachers and students seem to be left out of the debate. From the articles I have read which offer thoughts from teachers such as the article by Mark Moe have the most effect. In this article, Mark Moe describes a scene from his classroom where seniors got involved in the discussion. First hand experiences need to be heard more for teachers and students are on the front lines of the issue while academics can only study the situation.
By spotting an opportune time and kairos Mark Moe uses pathos and first hand experience to provide his own expertise on the subject. Using a narrative approach Moe gives his opinion that the delivery of knowledge to students in the current system is flawed. From first hand experience, Moe not only connects to the audience on an emotional level but also through logic by using references from literature as well.
The first chapter briefly touches on the definitions of “rhetorical situation” and “kairos” but Chapter 2 talks about them in greater depth. The rhetorical situation has a few components. It focuses on firstly, the rhetor and his connection to the issue at hand, next the target audience and their relationship to the issue, and then of course the main issue at hand needs to be clearly defined. The most important thing to remember about the “rhetorical situation” is that each is just that: a situation. This means that each rhetorical situation is unique and should be therefore treated uniquely and separately. Also, nothing can be an issue unless there is at least one person who disagrees with it, and so the objectivity of the issue is also important with the rhetorical situation. Kairos is a very special situational type of time. The word best linked with kairos is “opportunity.” Kairos is a special time frame that opportunity is most possible.
ReplyDeleteIn relation to the debate on stress and the high school student, there is much more pressure on the high school students today to go to prestigious colleges because parents believe that their kids will automatically be successful if each attends a prestigious college. This issue is debatable and unique, therefore making it a rhetorical situation. The target audience would be parents and students who are looking to set up students for success after high school. This is an urgent matter today because our current society nearly requires every person to attend college in order to be successful. So many parents have the preconceived notion that their kid must do well on standardized tests such as the CSAPS and SAT’s and must attend Harvard in order to be successful. But research shows that kids who are merely motivated and willing to put themselves out into the working world are more successful than those who go to an ivy-league. The problem is that high schools spend too much time turning kids into fact robots instead of teaching them how to love learning, that many students are too burned out to go on and be successful after high school. In terms of kairos, the time is now to change how high schools teach in order to turn out motivated students who WILL be successful later in life, because research shows more and more kids today are turning to drugs and alcohol instead of college.
In the readings we have done in class, it appears that there is a widespread notion that the pre-collegiate system needs to be reformed in order to restore the creative atmosphere in high school. There is also support for parents to understand that just because their kid gets into an ivy league does not mean that they are motivated enough to make a life for themselves after college.
In the second chapter, we were introduced to kairos and rhetorical situations. In my own words, kairos is the time in which invention and opportunity are possible, and that it is a frame in time versus a linear model in time. In rhetorical situations, kairos as an abstract concept is also meant as the time where spontaneous speaking can occur, because it can only come at the right time. People who utilize kairos must also be aware of the power struggles in an argument and learn what can shift. Rhetorical situations depend on kairos for addressing power struggles, subject matter, and ‘rules’ in certain arguments.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the debate on the stress of high school students is urgent due to the power struggles over the situation that affects students, parents, and teachers. These communities all have different inputs on what the factors of the situation are, and how they should be handled. However, students often have a smaller voice due to age and inexperience with rhetorical situations. Kairos applied in this situation states that the time for opportunity and invention for rhetoric is now because it is the appropriate time to act. There are only a few opportune moments to act, as was exampled with the case at the University of Illinois. The kairos was dragged on with that example, ending with a university caught in the middle of a decision that they would not make. In the case of the stress of high school students, this needs to be the opportune rhetorical situation before the moment passes.
Chapter 2 emphasizes the importance of a rhetoric situation and “kairos.” These terms refer to a different, less measurable kind of time. More accurately, a rhetoric situation is an opportunity for discussion. When identifying this kind of opportunity, one must observe current events that drive others to take on different perspectives about the issue. This produces a situation that is relevant in time and a cause for argument.
ReplyDeleteKairos is particularly prevalent in the debate about the stress that high school students face. In the current economy, it is difficult to find a lucrative, solid job. Pressure is put on the youth to be extremely successful in school in order to continue on to prestigious college to hopefully gain a respectable career. This debate would not have any relevance in the past because not as many graduates went on to study in college. Rather, these days, a huge percentage of students strive to attend excellent, scholarly universities. The current situation makes the debate more urgent, it particularly affects communities of teachers, administrators, and families with students.
Alfie Kohn takes advantage of this rhetorical situation with his argument regarding the little room that students are left with to explore ideas because of the pressure put on them to succeed academically. The solution he prompts is a change in the practices of educators along with parental support to replace letter and number grades with less destructive forms of assessment. Kohn effectively represents his perspective on the issue with regard to all parties involved. He creates a strong, thought-provoking argument.
Kairos and chronos are both Greek words meaning “time;” however, the interpretation and definition of these two words is a bit different. Chronos means an idea of time in terms of exact, punctual, a type of time that can be pinned down and measured such as time on a clock or a calendar. Kairos has a more liberal idea of time, looking at it as more of a period of time, such as a “window of opportunity.” It is very similar to the word “camino” in Spanish, which is loosely translated to “pathway” or “journey.” However, there is no exact definition for this word because, usually depending on its context, “camino” speaks of a general idea of the “journey of life.” It is not a set moment in time, but rather an opportunity when something can occur.
ReplyDeleteA rhetorical situation is a point in time when the opportunity for an argument arises. It is an event when a person’s opinions are presented as well as having an audience that listens to each statement. A very concise definition for this word is found on page 48 of Ancient Rhetorics which states, “rhetorical situations create the available argument.”
I personally think that the situation surrounding high school stress is becoming pertinent now due to the fact that it is in a point of time, which could be defined as kairos. There have been several events in recent time, which correlate directly to student stress. Teenage suicide rates have been on a steady incline (which could also be due to social pressure), but this rate only increases once students go to a school very similar to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The university actually has three-day weekends once a month in order to alleviate some of the stress associated with going to such a good school. They implemented this thanks to a rising suicide rate within its walls.
The communities that would find this issue to be urgent now would be those who are in high school (specifically teenagers), parents of those teenagers and the teachers who create the assignments and to some extent, college admissions boards. Every player in this story most likely has a different position on the amount of work assigned and the pressures on each student, but the fact of the matter remains the same: this is important to each of those communities.
http://tech.mit.edu/V126/N46/46silberstein.html---MIT source
ReplyDeletehttp://www.emaxhealth.com/1/22/24448.html---Suicide rates, there are several other sources I can find if necessary.
The second chapter of Ancient Rhetorics discusses the terms “kairos” and “rhetorical situation.” Kairos is essentially the change in rhetoric over time. For instance, there was much discussion on alternative energy sources after the catastrophic oil spill in the gulf this past summer. However, as the media has moved on and much of the nation has forgotten the spill we hear less and less about renewable energy development. This is a prime example of kairos. Rhetorical situation is basically when a situation brings about rhetoric. A good recent example of this is when Hillary Clinton ran for the Democratic presidential ticket. This brought about rhetoric around the subject of female political prospects, feminism, etc….
ReplyDeleteKairos is quite relevant to the debate surrounding the stress that high school students face. For instance, a century ago, psychology was an emerging field to say the least and little was known about stress. Therefore, stress amongst high school students was probably never looked at seriously. Today things are much different, as knowledge about stress has exponentially increased.
The rhetorical situation that brought about rhetoric in this case is increased complaining from students, parents, and administrators surrounding the state of our school system and its excruciating effects on the student. The author that best used this situation in my opinion is Denise Pope. She began her argument by placing readers in the midst of the blame that students, parents, teachers and administrators throw at each other.
Chapter two in the book focuses on kairos and the rhetorical situation. Kairos is a term used to describe a situational time. More specifically it refers to an advantageous time similar to opportunity. Rhetorical situation understands that each situation is different and thus cannot be fully anticipated or planned for. This new vocabulary shows how rhetoric shapes all social movements, because at one point or another all social movements are “under the radar” and then their rhetorical situation becomes relevant and the social movement takes off.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the high school stress, I feel that it is becoming an issue now because college applicants are at an all time high. There have always been stressful situations at college but the rhetorical situation is now because of the high numbers of reported stress related issues as well as the current importance of a brand name college degree.
The communities that find this issue the most important are communities with high population of young kids. This issue doesn’t only apply to the students themselves it also greatly affects the families and friends of those overly stressed high school students.
All of the readings we have done use kairos to persuade the audience that the pressure put on high school students to perform in school and on standardized tests is becoming overwhelming. The rhetorical situation in many of these articles are similar because they were written in a similar time period and taking a similar stance on the high school stress subject.
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ReplyDeleteIn the second chapter the authors Sharon Crowley and Debra Hawhee discuss “Rhetorical situation” and “kairos”. A Rhetorical situation is defined as the circumstances of a rhetorical act; involving a specific person, issue and environment. On the other hand, Kairos suggests a special notion of space and/or time.
ReplyDeleteThese two terms from the chapter can then be connected with the short readings from last week. Over the past few years, as the correlation between stress and high school students have become a prominent issue in the news. This issue has now become urgent because the pressure is causing students to cheat their way through classes, causing stressed-induced insomnia and even causing kids to drop out. This issue is affecting kids from New York to California and everywhere in between. Some common arguments were to change the pace of school, decrease the workload, eliminate homework, try being home schooled and to reconsider what it means to be successful. In the reading and clip we saw examples of students saying that they believe everyone expects them to be superheroes and that many students resorted to harmful means of help such as Adderall so they can juggle it all.
Alfie who is an author wrote about reconsidering attitudes about success and have the best rhetorical situation. He believes that children should learn first before they can achieve anything. He also believes that the solution to this education problem is to first of all start by reconsidering our attitudes about success and long-term goals and secondly and to change the school policies that create or exacerbate the problem. He has created a rhetorical situation by crafting this argument to show you that if you follow through with these two solutions you will affectively take this specific situation with your child and using the school board turn their life around for the better by giving them a wonderful opportunity to pursue their dreams.
The second chapter of our book introduces the concepts of kairos and rhetorical situations. Kairos is the time in which creating something takes and the time frame in which this can occur. A rhetorical situation is linked to kairos in the sense that it is more concisely the situation and window of time in which the discussion can occur. It has to do with multiple people having different views about the same topic at the same time, which in turn leads to a debate on the topic.
ReplyDeleteI feel the example of high school stress is a good example of a rhetorical situation. It is a topic that many people have come to decide is important at the same time with many similar but contrasting opinions. I feel that the communities that find this topic important are those that are financially stable enough to send their kids to college, and the kids who have the possible potential to attend a top tier college. These people understand that nothing comes easy in life but, is it really worth it at the expense of both the kids mental and physical health. The commentators we have read lean towards a persuasive argument to convince their particular readers that they have a good grasp on the situation and the right solution for this problem.
Although I disagree with Anne Galivan and her solution of the advantage of home-schooling I felt she had a pretty well-crafted argument. She pulled from personal experience and her own story with her own kids and how she has seen its benefits. This argument can be encouraging because it is not all theory and actually has results for at least one person which can be appealing to others.
Kairos and rhetorical situation were discussed in the second chapter of Ancient Rhetorics. Kairos is the variability of rhetoric, the change in the situation of the issues on topic. Rhetorical situation is the location, audience, and time of the topic of the argument. Kairos is based on time as well, but opportunity based instead of time read by a clock.
ReplyDeleteHigh school students are put under a lot of stress these days with all the testing and the excessive loads of homework. Students are trying so hard to be well prepared to get into very competitive colleges. Due to the ridiculous amounts of work put onto students they are losing in other areas of their young adult lives. School administrations seem to be increasingly focusing on their test scores instead of the students’ success. Everyone seems to agree that kids are held to a higher standard, are expected to be mature, and held accountable at a younger age. This increased level of stress is affecting this generation of kids. Parents and teachers are noticing the same patterns of the negative effects that stress has on kids as in adults. Harris Cooper’s debate on stress and high school students showed facts supporting less homework for kids of most ages, especially in high school students. His research showed that students test scores will go up if they are not forced to do as much homework as they are now. School administrators will be happy with these results because of their constant search for the best test scores for their schools, while parents will be more satisfied with their kids being able to spend time with their family and their childhoods will not be spent in a bed room working on homework.
Kairos is the word that the Greeks used to refer to time in the sense of opportunity, that is, situational timing that is advantageous to an individual or group. As Isocrates points out, “the urgency and currency of a situation” are what bring about rhetorical exchange, as an issue’s relevance is clear and urgent. For example, delivering a speech calling for action to reduce global warming shortly after the publishing of a study proving global warming to be real as well as it’s negative effects on the environment uses kairos because of the relevancy and urgency of the situation. A rhetorical situation is defined by the opinions, beliefs, past experiences, as well as the time and place of both the rhetor and the audience. Although some issues in rhetoric appear throughout history and others only for a short period of time, the rhetorical situation is what provides rhetorical arguments.
ReplyDeleteThe issue of stress and high school students is an example of kairos because it is an urgent issue due to the increasing pressures that have been forced upon students over the past few years. The communities that find this issue urgent are teachers, students, and parents. Nancy Kalish’s response to “Stress and the High School Student” in “It Starts Before High School,” Kalish uses the imagery of elementary students throwing up on their standardized test booklets to provide urgency to the issue and appeal to concerned parents. Kalish crafted her argument effectively by appealing to the opinions of the audience of this rhetorical situation.