Rhetoric of the Public Sphere
Rhetoric and Communications · 3 hrs Seminar/Discussion
Offered: Fall Or Winter, Every Year
RHET-4401 prerequisites
We couldn't read this course's prerequisites into a chain. The wording is under “Requisite courses” below.
Where RHET-4401 counts
Counts toward 3 more as one option among several, not as a course you must take:
Read from the departments' own calendar pages, where 50 of 208 programs are only partly machine-readable, so treat these as a minimum rather than the full list. Confirm with an academic advisor.
Description
This course adopts a rhetoric and communications framework for the purpose of conducting an intensive study of the concept of the public sphere, everyday processes of communal discourse and negotiation. It examines written, spoken, visual, gestural, and other texts that mediate relations among people in civic spaces. It may include such topics as the definition of the term "public sphere," the history of public discourse, the relationship between state and civil society, the ethics of public texts and power, the impact of the media in narrating public events, and the textual "handling" of social tensions.
Requisite courses
Completion of 42 credit hours [prerequisite(s)].
Restrictions
Students may not hold credit for this course and the former RHET-3401.
From the 2026-27 undergraduate calendar. Always verify details on WebAdvisor or with an academic advisor before registering.