Derek Brown

Dr. Blake Scott

ENC-3331
28 May 2012
How You Define Your Rhetorical Citizenship?

Rhetoric and Citizenship

Rhetorical citizenship is conscious or unconscious decision to partake in the well being of society
in any way you know how. These tasks can be as simple as recycling, keeping the roads clean, helping
your neighbor, or simply going to work and doing your job. Though small, these actions add up to create
a functional and successful community. To better understand rhetorical citizenship, I will first break
down what rhetoric means and then what being a citizen means. In this case, rhetoric is creating an
environment for effective action. It is the job of each person to understand their role as a citizen and
perform these effective actions for the welling being of society. To further explain these actions and
ideas, I will examine my life for examples of certain sponsors that influenced my idea perspective on
rhetorical citizenship which defined my role as a citizen.
Rhetoric

The core idea behind rhetoric is using communication effectively, but each situation can call for
a redefining of how rhetoric is performed. Therefore, rhetoric for my purpose needs a solid definition
and to do so I analyzed professional opinions on rhetoric to develop my own personal definition.
Any type of communication consists of or has the potential to consist of rhetoric. Aristotle
clarifies this idea saying rhetoric is defined as the ability to see what is possibly persuasive in every
given case (Rapp, 2002). As Aristotle proposed, rhetoric is a skill and is called upon to be used for a
purpose. But it seems his definition is almost passive by nature. One only calls upon the rhetoric skill for
a necessary means. In fact, rhetoric is not a skill that is employed when only necessary, but an active
idea many use everyday unknowingly. John Poulakos, author of Toward a Sophistic Definition of
Rhetoric, idea of rhetoric states the art which seeks to capture in opportune moments that which is
appropriate and attempts to suggest that which is possible (Poulakos, 1983). Poulakos suggests a more
aggressive and active idea of rhetoric. He uses the word seeks meaning the user of rhetoric is active in
their pursuit of it. Both definitions seem to suggest rhetoric has a dual sided nature. Whether you can
use can employ it through a learned ability or it is an almost unconscious pursuit toward all that is
possible in a situation.
Rhetorics dual-sided nature as either a passive skill or a learned nature shows that its
implementations can be either conscious or unconscious. By knowingly implementing rhetoric, one
searches for these opportune moments as Poulakos suggests by a person immediately trying to
analyze a situation for them. On the other hand, another person might passively discover these
moments of rhetorical use, not using them in every situation but calling upon his or her ability as a
means to incite action in his or her audience. Similarly, citizenship has a duel sided nature. One can
choose to partake in practicing it by looking for opportunities or another might just unknowingly
practice it.
Citizenship

A definitive of citizenship was best described in the 1997 film Starship Troopers. The movie has
an undertone of this dilemma of being a civilian versus being a citizen. A civilian is essentially any one
person strictly born into society; the person is granted civilian status through birth. However, citizenship
is an earned title. The film states it as a citizen accepts personal responsibility for the safety of the body
politic, defending it with his life, a civilian does not (Verhoeven, 1997). To achieve citizenship, a citizen
must devote themselves to what is called the government. This devotion comes from the civilian
understanding they are a part of something greater than themselves. A citizenship accepts that they
have a role to fill in society and each other person does as well. Citizenship forms a trust in the
community to know that as long as each person performs his or her job the society will function for the
betterment of all. For example, the government ensures roads are paved, teachers ensure teachers are
learning, doctors ensure patients are well, and police officers ensure criminals are caught. Each person
performs their specific duty to society and do not have to worry themselves that the other person is
doing their job. Each role is filled and society functions.
However, citizenship is something that is earned by those that [have] the courage to make the
safety of the human race their personal responsibility (Verhoeven, 1997). One cannot force citizenship
on to another. In the reality, each member chooses to actively seek the means to practice citizenship
and has an opportunity to earn this unofficial title in their community. The first step in taking this
personal responsibility is receiving a proper education. The United States ensures education is granted
to every United States civilian no matter what income one has or where you live. Education is essential
to a democracy as it is a nation run for the people, by the people, and democracy cant work unless
citizens are literate and informed (Wan, p. 31). Receiving an education allows people to elect a worthy
leader through voting that will hold together society, evaluate its needs, and ensure they are met.
Ultimately, it is up the educated citizen to evaluate his or her own personal situation and that of society
and decide how they will serve the community.
Rhetorical Citizenship

Examining both rhetoric and citizenship shows that one can express their citizenship through
rhetoric by choosing to express it. Aristotle described rhetoric as a persuasive stance, suggesting that a
citizen can use writing, verbal communication, affiliation with clubs and organizations, clothing worn,
places to live, places to visit, and really any action that you choose has an a rhetorical motive. A person
can choose to support a political candidate or take a stance on an issue and use their power of rhetoric
to express this. Once a person accepts their responsibility toward the body politic, they can then employ
the means at which to use their available resources to express his or her responsibility.
For example, an eighteen year old male decides after high school to enter in the armed services.
He chooses this as a personal choice and is willing to service his country through such an act. By doing
so, he is expressing a rhetorical choice. He is of age to join the military, is not bound by schooling or
other obligations, and has the available means to join the military. Therefore, he has taken a silence
form of communication toward society. He is serving his country as a citizen and expressing to the
people a higher calling of duty and honor. And he had done so because he was given the available
choices and took the opportunity to make it. Therefore, he expressed his rhetorical citizenship through
his available choices, his expression toward society, and serving his community through serving his
country.
Sponsorship through Rhetorical Citizenship

Every person has the capacity to learn and develop skills to be used through their community.
Finding these talents and putting them to good use is an inherent duty each person has toward one
another. Serving each other in this manner is what it means to be a rhetorical citizen. However,
discovering these talents is half the battle. Not everyone is born knowing what to do or how to service.
Receiving a proper education is one means of obtaining an idea of ones skills but really it comes down
to certain events or people that show us who we are and what we are good for. Deborah Brandt defines
theses events or people as sponsors saying they are any agent, local or distant, concrete or abstract,
who enable, support, teach, model, as well as recruit (Brandt, 1998). Clarifying on the meaning of
these sponsors, I will look toward myself as an example on how sponsors have helped me discover my
rhetorical citizenship.
I received my first real teachings of citizenship in junior high school in 2005 on the cross country
team. In 2005, I was a part of the Tuslaw Mustangs Cross Country team on the outskirts of Massillon,
Ohio. During this time, I was about fourteen years old and still immature yet, my time on the cross
country team taught me many forms of self discipline and always pursuing the best you can do, not
always what others expect of you. Being a proper citizen is about pursuing your excellence no matter
what that may be and using that excellence toward society. My cross country coach, Mr. Brightman, told
me I see a lot of potential in you, Derek. You have so much drive and determination. Use that to push
yourself further. This phrase sticks with me still today. I use it for more than just running practice but as
a general life lesson. This phrase has guided me to always pursue my best in everything I do and each
day I should look to do better than I did yesterday. I found that my citizenship to be the same way. One
should take it as a personal goal to achieve more today than yesterday and tomorrow more than today.
As long as we as people push ourselves we will service each through inspiration.
Though cross country taught me drive and gave me motivation, I still had yet to discover how to
use it. Where was I going to use my passion? What was I good? These are several questions I asked
myself until recently in 2011 and 2012. I began to discover through college courses that I had a passion
for writing in my English Composition II class, but later it evolved from writing into a more of a passion
for rhetoric, and using communication effectively. I began to discover what I liked, but I still had yet to
discover what to do with that passion. In the fall of 2012, I decided to take a career planning at UCF that
allowed me to discover that legal studies and technical communication were several things I enjoyed
doing. I figured out that I could use my rhetorical citizenship toward writing and serve my community
that way.
Conclusion

Developing an idea for rhetorical citizenship has yielded two ideas: citizens need to find what
they do well and then apply it rhetorically to aid society. A citizen finds his or her unique talents through
education and life experience. As public education is readily available in countries such as the United
States, every civilian has an opportunity to explore what they are good at through education. Once a
civilian finds a task or action that he or she can do well it is his or her responsibility to then explore how
to use this talent for the betterment of society. Rhetorical opportunity or opportune moments, as
Poulakos described, allow a civilian to find in each situation how to rhetorically apply this or her skills.
The idea of finding a way to apply these skills is difficult. Rhetoric allows for each citizen to
discover what his or her skills would be good for, but it does not force them to choose. Choosing what is
right for one is the idea of citizenship. The choice to become personally responsible for ones society is
rhetorical citizenship. Choices are presented throughout ones entire life for citizenship practices in the
shape of sponsors. Discovering these sponsors can guide one toward a possible way to express his or her
citizenship. One can choose to take up his or her responsibility toward society or one cannot. Just as the
film Starship Troopers suggested a citizen defends the body politic, the people and society, with their life
and a civilian does not. Ultimately, rhetorical citizenship is a choice: chose to be involved or chose not
to.
Works Cited
Brandt, D. (1998). Sponsors of Literacy. College Composotion and Communication , 165-85.
Poulakos, J. (1983). Toward a Sophistic Definition of Rhetoric. In G. Hauser, Philiosophy and Rhetoric (pp.
35-48). Pennsylvania State University Press.
Rapp, C. (2002, May 2). Aristotle's Rhetoric. Retrieved May 24, 2012, from Stanford Encyclopedia of
Philosophy: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle-rhetoric/
Verhoeven, P. (Director). (1997). Starship Troopers [Motion Picture].
Wan, A. J. (2011). In the Name of Citizenship: The Writing Classroom and the Promise of Citizenship. In J.
Schilb, College English (pp. 28-49). The National Council of Teacher of English.