Contrastive rhetoric
Encyclopedia
Contrastive rhetoric is the study of how a person's first language and culture influence his or her writing in a second language.
Research began in the 1960s, started by the American applied linguist Robert Kaplan
. Since that time, the area of study has had a significant impact on the teaching of writing in both English as a second language
(ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL) classes. Kaplan’s (1966) research pioneered the attention to cultural and linguistic differences in the writing of ESL students. This attention to writing was especially welcomed in the area of ESL instruction, as an emphasis on oral language
skills had previously dominated ESL contexts in the United States.
First, there has been an increase in the types of written texts that are considered the purview of second language writing
around the world. English for Academic Purposes
(EAP) classes teach other types of writing besides the student essay required in college classes. Other important genres are the academic research article, research report, and grant proposal. Writing for professional purposes, such as business, is also now considered a legitimate type of second language writing and worthy of research and teaching.
In addition to the expansion of the genre, the field has moved to emphasize the social situation of writing. Today, writing is increasingly regarded as being socially situated; each situation may entail special consideration to audience, purposes, level of perfection, and correspondingly may require varying amounts of revision, collaboration, and attention to detail. The expectations and norms of discourse communities or communities of practice (cultural and disciplinary), of course, may shape these situational expectations and practices. Social construction of meaning as dynamic, socio-cognitive activities is a phrase used to describe this approach to texts. Instead of analyzing what texts "mean," we want to understand how they "construct meaning." Bazerman and Prior (2004, p. 6) pose three questions to guide the analysis of writing:
Thus, two major factors—the acknowledgment of more genres with specific textual requirements and increased awareness of the social contexts of writing—have motivated scholars of contrastive rhetoric to adjust and supplement research approaches in their work.
writers in the second language (L2) writing field, however, have begun referring to contrastive rhetoric as if it had been frozen in space. Over the years, the term contrastive rhetoric has gained a negative connotation. Understood by many as Kaplan’s original work, contrastive rhetoric is often characterized as static, and is linked to contrastive analysis
, a movement associated with structural linguistics
and behavioralism
. Many of the contributions made to contrastive rhetoric in the past 30 years have been ignored. In a 2002 article, Connor attempted to address these recent criticisms and to offer new directions for a viable contrastive rhetoric. In addressing the critiques, she aimed to draw attention to the broad scope of contrastive rhetoric and determined that a new term would better encompass the essence of contrastive rhetoric in its current state. To distinguish between the often-quoted “static” model and the new advances that have been made, Connor suggests it may be useful to begin using the term intercultural rhetoric instead of contrastive rhetoric to refer to the current models of cross-cultural research.
The term intercultural rhetoric better describes the broadening trends of writing across languages and cultures. It preserves the traditional approaches that use textual analysis, genre analysis, and corpus analysis
, yet also introduces ethnographic approaches that examine language in interactions. Furthermore, it connotes the analysis of texts that allows for dynamic definitions of culture and the inclusion of smaller cultures (e.g., disciplinary, classroom) in the analysis.
Research began in the 1960s, started by the American applied linguist Robert Kaplan
Robert Kaplan
Robert Kaplan may refer to:* Robert D. Kaplan, travel writer, essayist, and international correspondent for The Atlantic* Robert S. Kaplan, business theorist and professor of accounting at Harvard Business School...
. Since that time, the area of study has had a significant impact on the teaching of writing in both English as a second language
English language learning and teaching
English as a second language , English for speakers of other languages and English as a foreign language all refer to the use or study of English by speakers with different native languages. The precise usage, including the different use of the terms ESL and ESOL in different countries, is...
(ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL) classes. Kaplan’s (1966) research pioneered the attention to cultural and linguistic differences in the writing of ESL students. This attention to writing was especially welcomed in the area of ESL instruction, as an emphasis on oral language
Spoken language
Spoken language is a form of human communication in which words derived from a large vocabulary together with a diverse variety of names are uttered through or with the mouth. All words are made up from a limited set of vowels and consonants. The spoken words they make are stringed into...
skills had previously dominated ESL contexts in the United States.
Trends
Since 1966, when Kaplan’s original work on contrastive rhetoric appeared, and 1996, when Ulla Connor’s book on contrastive rhetoric was published, many new trends have appeared in research approaches and methods. The change has been affected by two major developments.First, there has been an increase in the types of written texts that are considered the purview of second language writing
Second language writing
Second-language writing is the name usually given to the study of writing performed by non-native speakers/writers of a language, whether as a true second or foreign language....
around the world. English for Academic Purposes
English for Academic Purposes
English for academic purposes entails training students, usually in a higher education setting, to use language appropriately for study. It is a challenging and multi-faceted area within the wider field of English language learning and teaching , and is one of the most common forms of English for...
(EAP) classes teach other types of writing besides the student essay required in college classes. Other important genres are the academic research article, research report, and grant proposal. Writing for professional purposes, such as business, is also now considered a legitimate type of second language writing and worthy of research and teaching.
In addition to the expansion of the genre, the field has moved to emphasize the social situation of writing. Today, writing is increasingly regarded as being socially situated; each situation may entail special consideration to audience, purposes, level of perfection, and correspondingly may require varying amounts of revision, collaboration, and attention to detail. The expectations and norms of discourse communities or communities of practice (cultural and disciplinary), of course, may shape these situational expectations and practices. Social construction of meaning as dynamic, socio-cognitive activities is a phrase used to describe this approach to texts. Instead of analyzing what texts "mean," we want to understand how they "construct meaning." Bazerman and Prior (2004, p. 6) pose three questions to guide the analysis of writing:
- “What does the text talk about?”
- “How do texts influence audiences?”
- “How do texts come into being?”
Thus, two major factors—the acknowledgment of more genres with specific textual requirements and increased awareness of the social contexts of writing—have motivated scholars of contrastive rhetoric to adjust and supplement research approaches in their work.
Questions of relevance
Some postmodern and critical pedagogyCritical pedagogy
Critical pedagogy is a philosophy of education described by Henry Giroux as an "educational movement, guided by passion and principle, to help students develop consciousness of freedom, recognize authoritarian tendencies, and connect knowledge to power and the ability to take constructive...
writers in the second language (L2) writing field, however, have begun referring to contrastive rhetoric as if it had been frozen in space. Over the years, the term contrastive rhetoric has gained a negative connotation. Understood by many as Kaplan’s original work, contrastive rhetoric is often characterized as static, and is linked to contrastive analysis
Contrastive analysis
Contrastive analysis is the systematic study of a pair of languages with a view to identifying their structural differences and similarities. Historically it has been used to establish language genealogies....
, a movement associated with structural linguistics
Structuralism
Structuralism originated in the structural linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure and the subsequent Prague and Moscow schools of linguistics. Just as structural linguistics was facing serious challenges from the likes of Noam Chomsky and thus fading in importance in linguistics, structuralism...
and behavioralism
Behavioralism
Behavioralism is an approach in political science which seeks to provide an objective, quantified approach to explaining and predicting political behavior. It is associated with the rise of the behavioral sciences, modeled after the natural sciences...
. Many of the contributions made to contrastive rhetoric in the past 30 years have been ignored. In a 2002 article, Connor attempted to address these recent criticisms and to offer new directions for a viable contrastive rhetoric. In addressing the critiques, she aimed to draw attention to the broad scope of contrastive rhetoric and determined that a new term would better encompass the essence of contrastive rhetoric in its current state. To distinguish between the often-quoted “static” model and the new advances that have been made, Connor suggests it may be useful to begin using the term intercultural rhetoric instead of contrastive rhetoric to refer to the current models of cross-cultural research.
The term intercultural rhetoric better describes the broadening trends of writing across languages and cultures. It preserves the traditional approaches that use textual analysis, genre analysis, and corpus analysis
Corpus linguistics
Corpus linguistics is the study of language as expressed in samples or "real world" text. This method represents a digestive approach to deriving a set of abstract rules by which a natural language is governed or else relates to another language. Originally done by hand, corpora are now largely...
, yet also introduces ethnographic approaches that examine language in interactions. Furthermore, it connotes the analysis of texts that allows for dynamic definitions of culture and the inclusion of smaller cultures (e.g., disciplinary, classroom) in the analysis.
Further reading
- Bazerman, C., & Prior, P. (Eds.). (2004). What writing does and how it does it: An introduction to analyzing texts and textual practices. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
- Connor, U. (1996). Contrastive rhetoric: Cross-cultural aspects of second-language writing. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
. - Connor, U. (2002). New directions in contrastive rhetoric. TESOLTESOLTESOL may refer to:* The acronym "Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages", used in English as a Foreign or Second Language * TESOL Inc., a professional organization based in the United States for people working in this field...
Quarterly 36: 493-510. - Connor, U. (2004). Introduction. Journal of English for Academic Purposes 3: 271-276.
- Connor, U. (2004). Intercultural rhetoric research: Beyond texts. Journal of English for Academic Purposes 3: 291-304.
- ETIC (1975). English for academic study: Problems and perspectives. ETIC Occasional Paper. London: The British Council.
- Jordan, R. (1997). English for academic purposes: A guide and resource book for teachers. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
- Kaplan, R. (1966). Cultural thought patterns in intercultural education. Language LearningLanguage acquisitionLanguage acquisition is the process by which humans acquire the capacity to perceive, produce and use words to understand and communicate. This capacity involves the picking up of diverse capacities including syntax, phonetics, and an extensive vocabulary. This language might be vocal as with...
16(1): 1-20. - McCool, M. (2009). Writing around the world: a guide to writing across cultures. London: Continuum.
- Sanchez-Escobar, Ángel F. (2002) A Contrastive Ánalysis of the Rhetorical Patterns of English and Spanish Expository Journal Writing. See: http://sites.google.com/site/obrasdeangelfsanchezescobar/publicaciones/retorica-contrastiva
See also
- Applied linguisticsApplied linguisticsApplied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field of study that identifies, investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real-life problems...
- Contrastive linguisticsContrastive linguisticsContrastive linguistics is a practice-oriented linguistic approach that seeks to describe the differences and similarities between a pair of languages .-History:...
- Second language acquisitionSecond language acquisitionSecond-language acquisition or second-language learning is the process by which people learn a second language. Second-language acquisition is also the name of the scientific discipline devoted to studying that process...
- KishōtenketsuKishotenketsudescribes the structure and development of Chinese and Japanese narratives. It was originally used in Chinese poetry as a four-line composition, such as Qijue, and is also referred to as . The first Chinese character refers to the introduction or , the next: development, , the third: twist, ,...