David Zarefsky
Biographic Data
| ID | 4487311 |
|---|---|
| NAME | David Zarefsky |
| GIVEN NAMES | David |
| FAMILY NAME | Zarefsky |
| SIGNATURE | ZAREFSKY D |
| AFFILIATIONS | Northwestern University |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-7777-7318 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 22 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 75 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 22 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1977 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Como se caracteriza uma cultura argumentativa
Uma forte cultura argumentativa caracteriza-se por, pelo menos, cinco tensões produtivas, entre: comprometimento e contingência; partidarismo e comedimento; convicção pessoal e sensibilidade ao auditório; razoabilidade e subjetividade; e decisão e não fechamento. Diferenças na forma como comunidades gerenciam essas tensões explicam a existência de múltiplas culturas argumentativas e, por conseguinte, porque precisamos compreender a argumentação t…
Frans H. Van Eemeren, Bart Garssen, Sara Greco, Ton Van Haaften, Nanon Labrie, Fernando Leal, and Peng Wu. Argumentative Style. A pragma-Dialectical Study of Functional Variety in Argumentative Discou…
Public Speaking
President Johnson's War On Poverty
Lincoln and Historical Accuracy
Abraham Lincoln and White America
Journal Article Abraham Lincoln and White America Get access Brian R. Dirck. (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2012. xvi, 213 pp. $29.95.) Journal of American History, Volume 101, Issue 1, June 2014, Pages 265–266, https://doi.org/10.1093/jahist/jau349 Published: 01 June 2014
Abraham Lincoln and the Structure of Reason
Book Review| March 01 2013 Abraham Lincoln and the Structure of Reason Abraham Lincoln and the Structure of Reason. By David Hirsch and Dan Van Haften. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2010; pp. xxiv + 439. $34.95 cloth. David Zarefsky David Zarefsky Northwestern University Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Rhetoric and Public Affairs (2013) 16 (1): 194–198. https://doi.org/10.14321/rhetpublaffa.16.1.0194 Cite Icon Cite…
Year of Meteors
Whenever the “meaning” of the 1860 election is explained simplistically, far too much is left out of the story. Douglas R. Egerton's Year of Meteors avoids this pitfall by providing a comprehensive history of the election that reveals the interplay of strategy and contingency. The secession crisis, Egerton explains, did not just happen; it was planned by the group known as fire-eaters, who saw the 1860 Alabama resolutions, the Democrats’ split, a…
Lincoln and the House Divided
In the House Divided Speech, Lincoln warned that the country was tending toward nationwide slavery because of the work of a conspiracy in which Stephen Douglas was involved. A close reading of the speech text reveals how Lincoln sought to establish this seemingly outlandish claim and how doing so responded to the volatile nature of Illinois politics in 1858. The speech placed Lincoln in a position that enabled him to begin his rise to national pr…
Knowledge Claims in Rhetorical Criticism
Journal Article Knowledge Claims in Rhetorical Criticism Get access David Zarefsky David Zarefsky 1Department of Communication Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of Communication, Volume 58, Issue 4, December 2008, Pages 629–640, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2008.00405.x Published: 29 December 2008
Presidential Rhetoric and the Power of Definition
This feature addresses three questions: (1) How do we understand the nature of presidential rhetoric and its effects? (2) What does presidential rhetoric do? (3) How do we know? From the perspective of the humanities, rhetoric is a complex transaction among speakers or writers, texts or performance, audiences, and critics. Effects are better understood as invitations to respond. A key function of presidential rhetoric is to define social reality.…
Speaking to the People
Journal Article Speaking to the People: The Rhetorical Presidency in Historical Perspective. Ed. by Richard J. Ellis. (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1998. x, 283 pp. Cloth, $45.00, ISBN 1-55849-158-9. Paper, $17.95, ISBN 1-55849-159-7.) Get access David Zarefsky David Zarefsky Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of American History, Volume 86, I…
Rhetorical interpretations of the American Civil War
ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND THE SECOND AMERICAN REVOLUTION. By James M. McPherson. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1990; pp. xiii + 167. AMERICA IN 1857: A NATION ON THE BRINK. By Kenneth M. Stampp. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1990; pp. ix +388. HALF SLAVE AND HALF FREE: THE ROOTS OF CIVIL WAR. By Bruce Levine. New York: Hill and Wang, 1992; pp. viii + 292. LINCOLN AT GETTYSBURG: THE WORDS THAT REMADE AMERICA. By Garry Wills. New York: Simon and Schuster…
Spectator politics and the revival of public argument
(1992). Spectator politics and the revival of public argument. Communication Monographs: Vol. 59, No. 4, pp. 411-414
Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery
Winner of the Speech Communication's Winans-Wichelns Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Rhetoric and Public Address. Zarefsky examines the dynamics of the seven 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates, placing them in historical context and explaining the complicated issue of slavery in the territories, their focal point. He elucidates the candidates' arguments, analyzes their rhetorical strategies, and shows how public sentiment is transformed
Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery
Journal Article Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery: In the Crucible of Public Debate. By David Zarefsky. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990. xiv + 309 pp. $34.95, ISBN 0-226-97875-3.) Get access Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery: In the Crucible of Public Debate. By Zarefsky David. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990. xiv + 309 pp. $34.95, ISBN 0-226-97875-3.) Wayne C. Temple Wayne C. Temple Illinois State Archives Search for other works …
The Rhetoric of Social Research
From “conflict” to “constitutional question”
The American Constitution functions both as a condensation symbol and as a set of essentially contested concepts. The former function is the result of constructive ambiguity which produces broad social consensus; the latter function reflects the fact that Constitutional symbols are given meaning in specific controversies which produce dissensus. This seeming contradiction is contained by removing the battle for Constitutional interpretation from …
Was It a War
The Lincoln‐Douglas debates revisited
The Lincoln‐Douglas debates of 1858 are models not of statesmanship and eloquence, as is sometimes thought, but of strategies and tactics of rhetorical invention in the context of the public forum. The debates were marked by four patterns of argument: conspiratorial, legal, historical, and moral. The dynamics of each pattern are explored and speculations are offered about the transformation of controversial questions in the crucible of public deb…
The great society as a rhetorical proposition
The Great Society programs of President Lyndon Johnson reflected commitment to the quality of life, the idea of affirmative action, and government's role as stimulus and guarantor of social change. Obstacles to adopting the programs were overcome by employing conservative themes, claiming a moral imperative to act, and distinguishing the Great Society from older programs
President johnson's war on poverty
Movement studies typically assume that movements are insurgent campaigns for change. This assumption is challenged through a counter‐example. Implications of this analysis for theory and criticism are considered
Presidential Rhetoric and the Power of Definition
This feature addresses three questions: (1) How do we understand the nature of presidential rhetoric and its effects? (2) What does presidential rhetoric do? (3) How do we know? From the perspective of the humanities, rhetoric is a complex transaction among speakers or writers, texts or performance, audiences, and critics. Effects are better understood as invitations to respond. A key function of presidential rhetoric is to define social reality.…
Spectator politics and the revival of public argument
(1992). Spectator politics and the revival of public argument. Communication Monographs: Vol. 59, No. 4, pp. 411-414
Speaking to the People
Journal Article Speaking to the People: The Rhetorical Presidency in Historical Perspective. Ed. by Richard J. Ellis. (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1998. x, 283 pp. Cloth, $45.00, ISBN 1-55849-158-9. Paper, $17.95, ISBN 1-55849-159-7.) Get access David Zarefsky David Zarefsky Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of American History, Volume 86, I…
President johnson's war on poverty
Movement studies typically assume that movements are insurgent campaigns for change. This assumption is challenged through a counter‐example. Implications of this analysis for theory and criticism are considered
From “conflict” to “constitutional question”
The American Constitution functions both as a condensation symbol and as a set of essentially contested concepts. The former function is the result of constructive ambiguity which produces broad social consensus; the latter function reflects the fact that Constitutional symbols are given meaning in specific controversies which produce dissensus. This seeming contradiction is contained by removing the battle for Constitutional interpretation from …
Lincoln and the House Divided
In the House Divided Speech, Lincoln warned that the country was tending toward nationwide slavery because of the work of a conspiracy in which Stephen Douglas was involved. A close reading of the speech text reveals how Lincoln sought to establish this seemingly outlandish claim and how doing so responded to the volatile nature of Illinois politics in 1858. The speech placed Lincoln in a position that enabled him to begin his rise to national pr…
The Lincoln‐Douglas debates revisited
The Lincoln‐Douglas debates of 1858 are models not of statesmanship and eloquence, as is sometimes thought, but of strategies and tactics of rhetorical invention in the context of the public forum. The debates were marked by four patterns of argument: conspiratorial, legal, historical, and moral. The dynamics of each pattern are explored and speculations are offered about the transformation of controversial questions in the crucible of public deb…
The great society as a rhetorical proposition
The Great Society programs of President Lyndon Johnson reflected commitment to the quality of life, the idea of affirmative action, and government's role as stimulus and guarantor of social change. Obstacles to adopting the programs were overcome by employing conservative themes, claiming a moral imperative to act, and distinguishing the Great Society from older programs
President johnson's war on poverty
Movement studies typically assume that movements are insurgent campaigns for change. This assumption is challenged through a counter‐example. Implications of this analysis for theory and criticism are considered
The great society as a rhetorical proposition
The Great Society programs of President Lyndon Johnson reflected commitment to the quality of life, the idea of affirmative action, and government's role as stimulus and guarantor of social change. Obstacles to adopting the programs were overcome by employing conservative themes, claiming a moral imperative to act, and distinguishing the Great Society from older programs
The Lincoln‐Douglas debates revisited
The Lincoln‐Douglas debates of 1858 are models not of statesmanship and eloquence, as is sometimes thought, but of strategies and tactics of rhetorical invention in the context of the public forum. The debates were marked by four patterns of argument: conspiratorial, legal, historical, and moral. The dynamics of each pattern are explored and speculations are offered about the transformation of controversial questions in the crucible of public deb…
Was It a War
The Rhetoric of Social Research
From “conflict” to “constitutional question”
The American Constitution functions both as a condensation symbol and as a set of essentially contested concepts. The former function is the result of constructive ambiguity which produces broad social consensus; the latter function reflects the fact that Constitutional symbols are given meaning in specific controversies which produce dissensus. This seeming contradiction is contained by removing the battle for Constitutional interpretation from …
Spectator politics and the revival of public argument
(1992). Spectator politics and the revival of public argument. Communication Monographs: Vol. 59, No. 4, pp. 411-414
Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery
Winner of the Speech Communication's Winans-Wichelns Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Rhetoric and Public Address. Zarefsky examines the dynamics of the seven 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates, placing them in historical context and explaining the complicated issue of slavery in the territories, their focal point. He elucidates the candidates' arguments, analyzes their rhetorical strategies, and shows how public sentiment is transformed
Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery
Journal Article Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery: In the Crucible of Public Debate. By David Zarefsky. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990. xiv + 309 pp. $34.95, ISBN 0-226-97875-3.) Get access Lincoln, Douglas, and Slavery: In the Crucible of Public Debate. By Zarefsky David. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990. xiv + 309 pp. $34.95, ISBN 0-226-97875-3.) Wayne C. Temple Wayne C. Temple Illinois State Archives Search for other works …
Rhetorical interpretations of the American Civil War
ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND THE SECOND AMERICAN REVOLUTION. By James M. McPherson. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1990; pp. xiii + 167. AMERICA IN 1857: A NATION ON THE BRINK. By Kenneth M. Stampp. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1990; pp. ix +388. HALF SLAVE AND HALF FREE: THE ROOTS OF CIVIL WAR. By Bruce Levine. New York: Hill and Wang, 1992; pp. viii + 292. LINCOLN AT GETTYSBURG: THE WORDS THAT REMADE AMERICA. By Garry Wills. New York: Simon and Schuster…
Speaking to the People
Journal Article Speaking to the People: The Rhetorical Presidency in Historical Perspective. Ed. by Richard J. Ellis. (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1998. x, 283 pp. Cloth, $45.00, ISBN 1-55849-158-9. Paper, $17.95, ISBN 1-55849-159-7.) Get access David Zarefsky David Zarefsky Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of American History, Volume 86, I…
Presidential Rhetoric and the Power of Definition
This feature addresses three questions: (1) How do we understand the nature of presidential rhetoric and its effects? (2) What does presidential rhetoric do? (3) How do we know? From the perspective of the humanities, rhetoric is a complex transaction among speakers or writers, texts or performance, audiences, and critics. Effects are better understood as invitations to respond. A key function of presidential rhetoric is to define social reality.…
Knowledge Claims in Rhetorical Criticism
Journal Article Knowledge Claims in Rhetorical Criticism Get access David Zarefsky David Zarefsky 1Department of Communication Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of Communication, Volume 58, Issue 4, December 2008, Pages 629–640, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2008.00405.x Published: 29 December 2008
Lincoln and the House Divided
In the House Divided Speech, Lincoln warned that the country was tending toward nationwide slavery because of the work of a conspiracy in which Stephen Douglas was involved. A close reading of the speech text reveals how Lincoln sought to establish this seemingly outlandish claim and how doing so responded to the volatile nature of Illinois politics in 1858. The speech placed Lincoln in a position that enabled him to begin his rise to national pr…
Year of Meteors
Whenever the “meaning” of the 1860 election is explained simplistically, far too much is left out of the story. Douglas R. Egerton's Year of Meteors avoids this pitfall by providing a comprehensive history of the election that reveals the interplay of strategy and contingency. The secession crisis, Egerton explains, did not just happen; it was planned by the group known as fire-eaters, who saw the 1860 Alabama resolutions, the Democrats’ split, a…
Abraham Lincoln and the Structure of Reason
Book Review| March 01 2013 Abraham Lincoln and the Structure of Reason Abraham Lincoln and the Structure of Reason. By David Hirsch and Dan Van Haften. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2010; pp. xxiv + 439. $34.95 cloth. David Zarefsky David Zarefsky Northwestern University Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Rhetoric and Public Affairs (2013) 16 (1): 194–198. https://doi.org/10.14321/rhetpublaffa.16.1.0194 Cite Icon Cite…
Abraham Lincoln and White America
Journal Article Abraham Lincoln and White America Get access Brian R. Dirck. (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2012. xvi, 213 pp. $29.95.) Journal of American History, Volume 101, Issue 1, June 2014, Pages 265–266, https://doi.org/10.1093/jahist/jau349 Published: 01 June 2014
President Johnson's War On Poverty
Lincoln and Historical Accuracy
Public Speaking
Frans H. Van Eemeren, Bart Garssen, Sara Greco, Ton Van Haaften, Nanon Labrie, Fernando Leal, and Peng Wu. Argumentative Style. A pragma-Dialectical Study of Functional Variety in Argumentative Discou…
Como se caracteriza uma cultura argumentativa
Uma forte cultura argumentativa caracteriza-se por, pelo menos, cinco tensões produtivas, entre: comprometimento e contingência; partidarismo e comedimento; convicção pessoal e sensibilidade ao auditório; razoabilidade e subjetividade; e decisão e não fechamento. Diferenças na forma como comunidades gerenciam essas tensões explicam a existência de múltiplas culturas argumentativas e, por conseguinte, porque precisamos compreender a argumentação t…
Political science (18 works) · Law (13 works) · Sociology (12 works) · Philosophy (11 works) · History (10 works) · American Constitutional Law and Politics (9 works) · Rhetoric and Communication Studies (9 works) · History (8 works) · Law (7 works) · Politics (7 works)