Contrastive Rhetoric Revisited and Redefined

The theory of contrastive rhetoric was first put forth by Robert Kaplan in the mid 1960s to explain the differences in writing and discourse between students who were native speakers of English and their international counterparts. Over the past three decades, contrastive rhetoric theory has been used primarily by linguists in language centers and involved in ESL teaching. As the number of international students in American universities has continued to grow, contrastive rhetoric has become increasingly relevant to all disciplines, and to rhetoric and composition in particular. This volume breaks important new ground in its examination of contrastive rhetoric in the exclusive context of composition. The editor has assembled contributors with varying areas of specialty to demonstrate how the traditional definition of contrastive rhetoric theory can be applied to composition in new and innovative ways and how it can be redefined through the lens of addressing "difference" issues in writing. Thus, the volume as a whole clarifies how the basic principles of contrastive rhetoric theory can help composition instructors to understand writing and rhetorical decisions. With the inclusion of current research on multicultural issues, this collection is appropriate for all instructors in ESL writing, including teachers in rhetoric, composition, and linguistics. It can also be used as an advanced text for students in these areas. Wherever it is employed, it is certain to offer significant new insights into the application of contrastive rhetoric within the composition discipline.

Anne Bliss is a senior instructor and the coordinator for English as a Second Language (ESL) in the university writing program at the University of Colorado, Boulder Juanita Comfort is an assistant professor of English at Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia Ulla Connor is a professor of English at Indiana University at Indianapolis Jan Corbett is assistant professor of English at Delaware Valley College, Doylestown, Pennsylvania Robert B. Kaplan is Professor Emeritus of applied linguistics and past director of the American Language Institute, University of Southern California, where he was a member of the faculty since 1960, retiring on January 1, 1995 Mark McBeth has been working in the field of English composition at the City College of New York for the past 6 years Laura Micciche is assistant professor of English at East Carolina University Clayann Gilliam Panetta is a visiting assistant professor of English at Christian Brothers University in Memphis, Tennessee Fred Reynolds is professor of English and director of the graduate program in language and literacy at the City College of the City University of New York Dene Scoggins is an assistant professor of English at Texas Wesleyan University Kristen R. Woolever is a professor of English at Northeastern University in Boston