by Debra Hawhee. Praise to this significant critical addition to the literature on Burke and to its depth of understanding of the divergent philosophical foundations of rhetoric. Hawhee (English and communication, Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) provides a meticulous reading and analysis of Burke's works, looking at them in terms of concepts of body and mind. She evaluates Burke's experiences pertaining to his 1930 and 1940 writings: as medical researcher at the Rockefeller Foundation, as music critic for The Dial, as observer of the mystical dance performances of G. I. Gurdjieff, and as reader of Aristotle and William James in particular. The author explores Burke's notion of the mysterious relationship of body and mind as degrees of entity and activity particularly in terms of rhetoric, and the distinctions of motion and action at the "edges of language." In all, the book explores the transdisciplinary perspective of Burke's efforts in helping to solve the "eternally unsolvable enigma." This volume joins Heehaw's Bodily Arts: Rhetoric and Athletics in Ancient Greece (2004), which lists background texts that critique the topic of mind-body-language. Summing Up: Highly recommended. --Publisher's Weekly. (Check Catalog)
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Moving bodies : Kenneth Burke at the edges of language
by Debra Hawhee. Praise to this significant critical addition to the literature on Burke and to its depth of understanding of the divergent philosophical foundations of rhetoric. Hawhee (English and communication, Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) provides a meticulous reading and analysis of Burke's works, looking at them in terms of concepts of body and mind. She evaluates Burke's experiences pertaining to his 1930 and 1940 writings: as medical researcher at the Rockefeller Foundation, as music critic for The Dial, as observer of the mystical dance performances of G. I. Gurdjieff, and as reader of Aristotle and William James in particular. The author explores Burke's notion of the mysterious relationship of body and mind as degrees of entity and activity particularly in terms of rhetoric, and the distinctions of motion and action at the "edges of language." In all, the book explores the transdisciplinary perspective of Burke's efforts in helping to solve the "eternally unsolvable enigma." This volume joins Heehaw's Bodily Arts: Rhetoric and Athletics in Ancient Greece (2004), which lists background texts that critique the topic of mind-body-language. Summing Up: Highly recommended. --Publisher's Weekly. (Check Catalog)
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