Memory: Rhetoric's Forgotten Canon

Memory: Rhetoric’s Forgotten Canon

***Open to faculty, graduates, independent scholars, and
undergraduates***

Federation Rhetoric Symposium 2009
Texas A&M University-Commerce
February 6, 2009

Submission Deadline: November 21, 2008

Acceptance Notification: December 31, 2008

“Memory is the treasury and guardian of all things.”
—Cicero, De Oratore

At the Federation Rhetoric Symposium two years ago,
composition scholar Kathleen Blake Yancey focused our
attention on The Fifth Canon  Delivery, foregrounding the
many ways that this largely forgotten canon shapes and
defines 21st century literacies. This year we’re extending
the discussion by considering the fourth canon  Memory.

In what ways does memory live in current rhetorical
practices?
How does this classical device both focus and fragment our
research?
How does memory mediate our pedagogy and practice?
How are 21st century literacies mediated by memory?
How does new/old media mediate memory? (And vice versa?)

Deborah Brandt (University of Wisconsin-Madison), noted
scholar in literacy studies, is the keynote speaker this
year. Her book Literacy in American Lives (2001) was awarded
the 2002 MLA Mina P. Shaughnessy Prize, the 2003 Grawemeyer
Award in Education, and the 2003 CCCC Outstanding Book
Award. Brandt has additionally published Literacy as
Involvement: The Acts of Writers, Readers, and Texts (1990)
and has Literacy and Learning: Reflections on Reading,
Writing, and Society forthcoming.

We welcome submissions from all areas including but not
limited to: Rhetoric and Composition, English, Journalism,
Political Science, Education, History, Film Studies, Media
Studies, Art, Psychology, and Sociology. We also welcome
presentations via non-traditional modalities  video,
audio-/image-based.

Suggestions of possible areas of interest:
Literacy Studies
Critical Theory
Pedagogy
Rhetoric & Technology
Composition & Rhetoric
Creative Writing
Memoir
Writing Center Theory & Practice
Basic Writing Theory & Practice
Rhetoric & Philosophy
TESOL, ESL & Composition
Pop Culture
Film Studies
Rhetoric of Mass Media
New Media
Literature, All Genres

Individual and Panel Proposals Welcome. Prizes for
outstanding student papers will be awarded!

Deadline for Submission of a 250-Word Abstract (electronic
format preferred): November 21, 2008.

Submissions and Additional Information:
Rhetoric_Symposium@tamu-commerce.edu

Via USPS:
Federation Rhetoric Symposium 2009
c/o Melissa Knous
Department of Literature and Language
PO Box 3011
Texas A&M University  Commerce
Commerce, TX 75429-3011

For more information, see the conference website at:
http://orgs.tamu-commerce.edu/FRS/

Brandi Westmoreland
Texas A&M University - Commerce
Co-Chair, Federation Rhetoric Symposium 2009