In Dialectical Rhetoric, Bruce McComiskey argues that the historical conflict between rhetoric and dialectic can be overcome in ways useful to both composition theory and the composition classroom. Historically, dialectic has taken two forms in relation to rhetoric. First, it has been the logical development of linear propositions leading to necessary conclusions, a one-dimensional form that was the counterpart of rhetorics in which philosophical, metaphysical, and scientific truths were conveyed with as little cognitive interference from language as possible. Second, dialectic has been the topical development of opposed arguments on controversial issues and the judgment of their relative strengths and weaknesses, usually in political and legal contexts, a two-dimensional form that was the counterpart of rhetorics in which verbal battles over competing probabilities in public institutions revealed distinct winners and losers. The discipline of writing studies is on the brink of developing a new relationship between dialectic and rhetoric, one in which dialectics and rhetorics mediate and negotiate different arguments and orientations that are engaged in any rhetorical situation. This new relationship consists of a three-dimensional hybrid art called “dialectical rhetoric,” whose method is based on five topoi: deconstruction, dialogue, identification, critique, and juxtaposition. Three-dimensional dialectical rhetorics function effectively in a wide variety of discursive contexts, including digital environments, since they can invoke contrasts in stagnant contexts and promote associations in chaotic contexts. Dialectical Rhetoric focuses more attention on three-dimensional rhetorics from the rhetoric and composition community.

"At last a text that allows students to study the primary texts of classical rhetoric situated in their historical and social context. Williams selects judiciously among foundational texts and also offers rich introductory essays that make clear the historical, intellectual, and cultural setting in which the study of rhetoric took root." DAVID ZAREFSKY, Northwestern University "An Introduction to Classical Rhetoric offers a scholarly alternative for students of classical rhetoric which is both accessible and engaging." BETH BENNETT, University of Alabama An anthology of primary texts in translation, An Introduction to Classical Rhetoric offers an overview of the social, cultural, and intellectual factors that influenced the development and growth of rhetoric during the classical period. Featuring classical rhetoric from the Sophists through St. Augustine, Williams provides an in-depth introduction to the period, as well as introductions to each author and each selection. Examples of rhetoric are interspersed between captivating, thoughtprovoking explanations and analyses that give new context and meaning to these ancient texts. Each selection includes study questions to enable students to develop multiple perspectives on the material, stimulate critical thinking, and provide starting points for dialogue.

This book introduces basic concepts of human signification, explains both primal & contemporary rhetoric experience, & offers challenges to common-sense understandings.