Book Reviews

Ken Lindblom, Column Editor

Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to WritingElizabeth Losh, Jonathan Alexander, Kevin Cannon, and Zander Cannon. Boston: Bedford, 2014.

Reviewer: Ken Lindblom, Stony Brook University

Although I have been a rhetorical theory nerd for a couple of decades now, I have never read a treatise on the subject that I would call “a hoot.” Until now. Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to Writ-ing is a smart, well- researched, and extremely user- friendly guide to rhetorical theory for writing (and reading). It’s also a lot of fun!

The 291- page book includes seven chapters, which are called “issues” to go along with the comic- book style of the text. Chap-ter topics cover writing processes, definitions and reasons for rheto-ric, strategies for critical reading, creating identities through writ-

of Plato and Aristotle, helping us to understand the subtle differ-ences between the thinkers using remarkably few words and a great many thoughtful images (39– 42). And, I must say, their illus-tration of Plato’s complex Cave of Illusions is the most easy- to- understand description of the alle-gory I’ve ever encountered (42).

We also meet comic- book ver-sions of the illustrators of Under-standing Rhetoric, Kevin and Zander, who talk to us and each other about the ways in which their drawings are also examples of rhetoric. In a particularly amus-ing section (21– 22), the artists get into an argument about the use of diagonal lines in drawings, which harkens back to a more serious allu-sion to artistic debate that occurs earlier in the chapter. The illustra-tors continue to make appearances throughout, as their work as visual rhetoricians— drawing images and making artistic allusions in the text— is highlighted.

One of the most entertaining and instructive features of Under-standing Rhetoric is that it includes so many real- life and imagined characters who serve as examples or as voices for different forms or aspects of rhetoric. Frederick Dou-glass’s autobiography is a focal point in a chapter called “Strategic Reading,” where we see Douglass

ing, argumentation, conducting effective research, in- depth explo-rations of revision, and writing for public audiences. Each chapter begins with a comic- book cover and then offers a series of comic- book panels of different sizes and shapes that narrate important ideas about rhetoric, writing, and literacy more broadly defined. Our guides for this journey to the center of rhetoric are animated versions of coauthors Liz and Jona-than, who take us into their class-rooms and offices and into some of their private writing spaces.

Real Characters

In the introductory chapter, Liz’s and Jonathan’s animated alter egos use a full- color photograph of their “real” selves to make impor-tant points about visual literacy, such as how cropping can drasti-cally change the meaning of an image or how adding text to a photo can alter the meanings of the subjects’ facial expressions (14– 15). Liz and Jonathan stay with readers throughout the text, guiding our reading and help-ing us to make sense of the other images and lessons in the book. In another section of the book, “Reanimating Ancient Views of Rhetoric,” Liz and Jonathan intro-duce us to comic- book versions

92 En glish Journal 104.5 (2015): 92– 95

EJ_May_2015_C.indd 92 4/30/15 5:50 PM

93English Journal

Book Reviews

reader’s inner tenth grader— it also offers extremely lucid, prac-tical advice for young and experi-enced writers. There are sections on the importance of surface cor-rectness, in- depth explanations of close reading, lessons for proper citation and avoiding plagiarism, terrifi c advice for exploring topics for writing (called “invention” in ancient rhetoric), and much more.

Those used to text- only books, such as most En glish teachers I know, should be cautioned not to assume this book is less complex because of its comic- book style. In fact, the opposite is true. The images throughout are so well chosen and so well informed by ancient and contemporary aca-demic thought and they are so highly illustrative of contemporary popular culture that the text is a masterpiece of rhetorical educa-tion. For example, on a single page dedicated to quick explanations of the rhetorical chestnuts— ethos, logos, and pathos— eleven small

ence fi ction writer. Additionally, imagined characters include Meta-morph, a cross- dressing superhero who shows us how writers change their identities to suit different audiences and purposes; a talk- show host who goads Liz and Jon-athan into a less- than- fair debate (until they turn the tables on him and explain what ethical debate entails); and a giant “delete” key and a giant red pen, who paralyze writers with fear until Liz and Jonathan fi ght them off to offer more supportive (and in- depth) versions of revision.

Practical and Innovative

While the book is a great deal of fun to read— and, be warned, its humor sometimes aims at the

living through some of the events in his autobiography, and we see him writing his autobiography as thought- bubbles reveal the rhe-torical decisions he’s making as a writer. Especially rich is how Liz and Jonathan explain the textual images in Douglass’s writing, with Kevin and Zander providing their interpretations in literal images in the same panels. In one panel (see Figure 1), we see Frederick Douglass writing by lantern light, deliberately using a biblical image (which is illustrated in his thought bubble), as Liz and Jonathan unpack some of the logic inform-ing Douglass’s rhetoric (70). Only a comic- book panel could create such a complex, multi- vocal, and multi- chronological description in such simple terms and in such a small space.

Other guest appearances from real- life fi gures include Cicero, Abraham Lincoln, Jane Austen, Maxine Hong Kingston, and Greg Benford, physicist and sci-

The images throughout are so

well chosen and so well

informed that the text is a

masterpiece of rhetorical

education.

FIGURE 1.

From Understanding Rhetoric by Rachel Losh et al. Copyright © 2014 by Bedford/St. Martin’s. Used with permission.

EJ_May_2015_C.indd 93 4/30/15 5:50 PM

94 May 2015

Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to Writing

explain the images, but rather they leave knowing readers (and teachers) to discover them. I’ve read this text many times and fi nd important new allusions in the images with every reading. Cre-ative allusions in the book range from the classical to the contem-porary: for example, painter Rafa-el’s The School of Athens; Gilbert Austin’s 17th- century treatise on rhetorical gestures, Chironomia; Facebook; fi lm noir; and popular online dating sites. One chapter respectfully analyzes the graphic novel version of the 9/11 Commis-sion Report, while another inter-prets the logo for the Human Rights Campaign (19).

“Reframe with Luis and Cindy” is yet another creative addition to Understanding Rhetoric. Each chap-ter ends with a short epilogue in which two college writing stu-dents (Luis and Cindy) talk about their writing classes with Cindy’s mother, who is also taking a writ-ing course. Luis and Cindy are both fl uent in Spanish and En glish, while Cindy and her mother also converse in Korean, which adds to the fun and to the book’s cultur-ally progressive approach. These three characters, who also make occasional appearances in the main chapters, take up practical rami-fi cations of the rhetorical theories discussed in each chapter. They analyze frat party posters, com-pose visual memoirs, discuss how to write appropriate emails to pro-fessors, and think through some of the toughest aspects of researching and writing academic papers. Stu-dent readers will recognize them-selves and their own experiences in these comic reframes.

Because I fi nd Understanding Rhetoric so well researched and

Kairos is an extremely powerful rhetorical concept, but most writ-ing texts ignore it. As an example of kairos gone bad, we witness a young professor sending an email to the university president with the subject line, “Listen, You!” (49). As the impetuous professor realizes she hit the send button too quickly on her inappropriately toned email, her thought bubble shows a butterfl y with the word tenure on it fl uttering away— refl ecting a recurring nightmare I’ve had since the late 1980s.

To their credit, the authors of Understanding Rhetoric do not over-

images greatly enhance the tex-tual defi nitions (see Figure 2; 44). In the pathos panel is an image of a mushroom cloud, which those versed in rhetorical theory need not be told alludes to Lyndon Johnson’s infamous campaign ad of 1964, which discharged fear of nuclear attack on viewers. In the panel for logos is Aristotle’s famous syllogism using the mortality of Plato to demonstrate deductive reasoning.

I was especially pleased to see that kairos, an ancient Greek term that refers to the timing and mea-sure of a communication, is taken seriously in Understanding Rhetoric.

FIGURE 2.

From Understanding Rhetoric by Rachel Losh et al. Copyright © 2014 by Bedford/St. Martin’s. Used with permission.

EJ_May_2015_C.indd 94 4/30/15 5:50 PM

95English Journal

Book Reviews

recommend the text especially for students in advanced high school En glish and first- year college stu-dents, and for any teachers who can help their students at virtu-ally any level unpack its wisdom. I taught the book in an upper- level college class on nonfiction and informational rhetoric in spring 2014, and it was a big hit with the students. A quick Inter-net search will provide access to a “making of” video that describes the composition and illustra-tion of Understanding Rhetoric, a free sample chapter, and a trea-sure trove of related materials. Congratulations to the authors, illustrators, and editors of this innovative, useful, and hilarious book!

appear. When the second edition is released, I hope it includes at least Gorgias and Protagoras, if not Heraclitus and more of the older sophists, to whom we owe a largely unacknowledged debt for our contemporary understandings of rhetoric. “Where, oh where, could the authors find someone to help them make these additions?” he asked rhetorically.

The Bottom Line

Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to Writing is a fun, prac-tical, infinitely readable guide to rhetoric. Its minimalist text and remarkably rich tapestry of images and allusions make it a deceptively simple book. I highly

so creatively presented, I may be accused of being less than critical in this review; however, to be fair, I do have some minor quibbles with the authors. For example, in the panel for pathos (see Figure 2), an image appears of a man with explosives strapped to his body. The threat of violence is not a form of rhetoric: It is force. Rheto-ric is an alternative to force. The authors of this book are generally so careful, I wonder if I’m miss-ing something here; but, if not, this is a misstep— and an impor-tant one. Also, while Plato and Aristotle deserve their place in the rhetorical sun, certainly some of the early sophists, whom Plato outfoxed by renaming his version of rhetoric philosophy, should also

Ken Lindblom is director of En glish teacher education and associate dean for academic programs in the School of Professional Development at Stony Brook University. He has belonged to NCTE since 1989 and is also a member of the Executive Board of NCTE’s Conference on En glish Education. He may be reached at kenneth.lindblom@stonybrook.edu.