Kenneth Duva Burke (1897-1993) was an American literary theorist, poet, essayist, and novelist, who wrote on 20th-century philosophy, aesthetics, criticism, and rhetorical theory. As a literary theorist, Burke was best known for his analyses based on the nature of knowledge. One of the first individuals to stray away from more traditional rhetoric and view literature as “symbolic action,” Burke was unorthodox, concerning himself not only with literary texts, but with the elements of the text that interacted with the audience: social, historical, political background, author biography. “It is not our purpose to discover Burke’s indebtedness, conscious or unconscious, to Aristotle. The problem of influence is a difficult one and it is not at issue here. Rather, we merely hope to discover in what respects Burke’s rhetorical theory and Aristotle’s appear to be like or unlike. “We shall attempt, first of all, to set forth Kenneth Burke’s basic assumptions regarding the nature of man, society, and the function of the speaker in that society. With these assumptions serving as the matrix of his theory, we shall next attempt to make Burke’s theory of rhetoric explicit. We shall consider Burke’s conception of (1) the function of rhetoric, (2) its definitions, (3) its scope, and (4) the methodological devices of which it makes use. Finally, using this same fourfold perspective, we shall compare Burke’s conception of rhetorical theory with Aristotle’s.”—L. Virginia Holland

This work, bearing a dedication to God as the ultimate symbol-user, explores Kenneth Burke's rhetorical thought, particularly as it concerns entelechy. The author looks at the logological basis upon which Burke builds his theory of entelechy, the vocabulary of entelechy in Aristotle and Burke, Harold Bloom's reading of the Burkean system, Burke's pentad and entelechial statistical methods, prayer theory, and psychotic entelechy. He also uses Burkean entelechial methods to critique the sociopolitical tragedy that occurred at the Branch-Davidian compound in Waco, Texas. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Rhetorical criticism promised to bring New Testament studies into a new era that approached the Bible as a document of persuasive discourse. Major proponents of this approach suggested that its potential lies in its democratization of biblical interpretation. To date, that promise has never been fulfilled. The reasons can be found by exploring the rhetoric of these rhetorical critics. Such an exploration uncovers systems of disciplinary constraints and discursive habits that keep rhetoric firmly within traditional units of academic biblical interpretation. The promise of rhetoric can only be fulfilled by shattering all notions of a rhetorical 'programme' of biblical interpretation.

"In Burke, War, Words, M. Elizabeth Weiser reinserts Kenneth Burke's theory of dramatism into the social milieu from which it originated, fostering a new understanding of how this concept of motivation was itself motivated by war and criticism. Weiser's model of a new approach to historiography contextualizes the origins of rhetorical theories in order to enrich their universal application"--BOOK JACKET.

Two Voices in One: Essays in Asian and Translation Studies is a collection of papers by eight scholars of international standing. Concentrating on what really makes Asian and Translation Studies fascinating and worth one’s while, it opens the reader’s eyes to new horizons, horizons not found in collections or monographs that look at either discipline in isolation. In going through the collection, the reader will see how a translation problem can rear a “yellow-ochre head,” why a Chinese garden can become a source language text, and in what way a commentary can shine with “Multiflorate Splendour.” Emerging from the surreal world, the reader must be prepared, first to have his/her breath taken away by a translation project on a truly grand scale, then to see the difference between the page and the stage, and finally to be amazed by the speed at which computer-aided translation has been developing. With equal amazement, the reader will learn that Chinese can sometimes be more effectively taught, not through Chinese, but through translation, and that the Greek philosopher Aristotle and the Chinese philosopher Mencius are linked, not only by philosophy, but also by translation.