In Lloyd F. Bitzer’s The Rhetorical Situation, he talks about the specifics of rhetoric. He mentions the importance of identifying your discourse. But, he also states that “it is clear that situations are not always accompanied by discourse”. (pg. 2) According to Bitzer, the most important aspect to consider in rhetoric is the situation. He says, “So controlling is situation that we should consider it very ground the very ground of rhetorical activity.” (pg. 5) There are three constituents of any rhetorical situation: exigence, audience, and constraints. Bitzer defines rhetorical situation as ” a complex of persons, events, objects, and relations presenting an actual or potential exigence which can be removed”. (pg. 6) Lastly, according to Bitzer, rhetorical exigence is all around us because the world invites change. This change alters any given situation.
Bitzer stresses the importance of situation in rhetoric. He provides numerous examples where he proves that without knowledge of the situation, the rhetoric is completely thrown off. Specifically, on page 5, Bitzer mentions the importance of the speeches following the assassination of President Kennedy. If not for that situation, the speeches would have been seen as pointless and random. It is important to understand the situation around you to properly gauge your exigence, audience, and constraints. More importantly, you should understand that any given situation has the ability to change. Thus, you must adapt to the altering situation to adequately satisfy the changing rhetorical needs.
Question: How does one satisfactorily prepare a rhetorical situation, when he/she is unable to gauge the audience?
Emma Watson’s Speech:
Exigence- Gender equality. More specifically, women not being paid the same as men for equal amounts of work.
Audience- The UN general counsel, feminists, and anyone with the ability to make a difference.
Constraints- Appealing the topic of feminism to men; trying not to make feminism sound like a hatred of men.
I don’t think you can write a successful rhetorical piece without being able to gauge your audience. If you cannot get into the mind of the people you are trying to appeal to, you cannot tailor your writing to them. You will end up either writing something that leans to the opposite side of your audience, or you will write something that is so general that it won’t make a personal connection to your audience.
I agree with your summarization of “The Rhetorical Situation” by Bitzer because you define the main argument Bitzer was convey to the reader. To answer your question on how to prepare a rhetorical situation I believe that you the writer must know who you want your reading to appeal to for you to be able to write an satisfactory rhetorical situation.