Christian Kock – författare

This book proposes a unified approach to populism that sees it as a primarily rhetorical concept. Populism is on the rise worldwide with both populist leaders and movements gaining power, and the term “populism” resounds in political debate, journalism, and scholarship. Populism as a phenomenon seems to instantiate perennial issues besetting rhetoric (e.g., the charges of manipulation, exclusive reliance on opinion over knowledge, and abuse of emotional appeals), yet relatively little research on populism has emerged from the discipline of rhetoric. This volume investigates the theory and practice of populism under the heading of rhetoric but as an interdisciplinary effort involving scholars in rhetoric as well as neighbouring disciplines such as political science and sociology. Seven case studies covering Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, UK, USA, and Venezuela offer conceptual discussions as well as close analyses applying both historical and theoretical approaches. In the introduction, the editors outline the problem of populism and their project, presenting the book’s wide-spanning case-based explorations. In an afterword they seek to distil a “minimal” rhetorical definition of populism. The claim or pretense to speak for “the people” emerges as the feature that connects the highly diverse instances studied in the book—and populisms in general, the editors hypothesize. They argue that this prevalent rhetorical move, often glossed over as unremarkable and banal, is in principle more debatable and deserving of more vigilant scrutiny than usually assumed.

This book, a rich collection authored by rhetorical scholars, unpacks how rhetoric contributes to argumentation studies. It begins with an introduction that identifies defining features of a rhetorical approach to argumentation which has several corollaries, including the special status of argumentation about action, the condition of uncertainty and the necessity of securing adherence from an audience. Chapters explore topics such as the properties of argumentation in the realm of rhetoric, the use of presentational devices, the role of rhetoric in the evolving formation of public morality, conditions for democratic argumentation, argument pedagogy, rhetorical insights into science communication, and other features within the realm of rhetorical argumentation. This book is relevant to students and researchers in linguistics, rhetoric, philosophy, argumentation studies, and communication studies.

This book offers a theory of those formal properties of art that are apt to afford strong aesthetic experience – a project resembling Aristotle’s in the Poetics, where he analysed structures in tragedies that condition the “peculiar pleasure” of tragedy. However, the book’s scope cuts across all genres of literature and also includes classical music – the formal art par excellence. Drawing on a wide array of recent theoretical work and empirical evidence, the book closely analyses dozens of examples of both art forms. Besides Aristotle, major inspiration comes from two modern master thinkers: the linguist Roman Jakobson, who defined the “poetic function” of language, and the rhetorician Kenneth Burke, who proposed a “psychological” concept of form. Throughout, the book argues for aesthetic experience as an end in itself and a component of quality of life, one to which everyone should have access – rather than just a means to other ends.

”Retorisk poetik antager og argumenterer for at litteratur er til for at virke på læsere. Dermed menes andet og mere end at den er budskaber der overfører betydning. Litteratur er til for at gøre noget ved eller for læsere. Eller for at udtrykke det uden reference til nogen iboende formålsbestemmelse: Litteratur er først og fremmest afgrænset ved, og interessant ved, at den gør noget ved eller for sine modtagere.

Retorisk poetik gør altså op med den tradition der har været i akademisk litteraturvidenskab og beslægtede discipliner til at identificere det væsentlige og interessante ved litteratur som det betydningsindhold den overfører. Men ordene og deres betydning er midler til mål af en anden orden; målene er de virkninger de kan skabe hos modtagerne – virkninger som ikke kun er kognitive, ikke kun tilegnelse af betydningsindhold (i sig selv et spændende og uhyre komplekst emne), men som involverer dynamiske, tidslige processer hvori følelser ofte spiller en rolle, og som er endnu mere vanskelige at analysere end tilegnelse af betydning.”

Bogen er en samling af Christian Kocks artikler om retorik og litteratur – visse reviderede, andre for første gang på dansk.

”Det vi kan opnå med argumenter i politisk debat, er alene at kaste lodder i en vægtskål, sådan at vor sag – i hvert fald hos nogle af dem vi taler til – virker mere tungtvejende end modpartens.”

Retorisk praksis handler om retorik som praktisk udøvelse af sproget. Fordi retorikken handler om frembringelse – ikke kun beskrivelse – af tekster til brug i praksis, er den retoriske argumentationsteori ikke kun deskriptiv, men også normativ; den er et bud på en utopisk norm for samfunds­diskurs.

Retorisk praksis er en antologi med artikler – fra forskningsartikler over aviscauserier til humoristiske foredrag – om retorik, om tekstkvaliteter, om at arbejde med tekster, om at undervise i tekster og ikke mindst om retorikkens plads og rolle i den offentlige debat og i medierne.