The presidency and rhetorical leadership / edited by Leroy G. Dorsey.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Dorsey, Leroy G., 1959-

Series:

Presidential rhetoric series ; no. 6.

Presidential rhetoric series ; no. 6

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Rhetoric--Political aspects--United States.

Rhetoric.

English language--United States--Rhetoric.

English language.

Political oratory--United States.

Political oratory.

Presidents--United States--Language.

Presidents.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (280 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

College Station : Texas A&M University Press, c2002.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Successful presidential leadership depends upon words as well as deeds. In this multifaceted look at rhetorical leadership, twelve leading scholars in three different disciplines provide in-depth studies of how words have served or disserved American presidents.At the heart of rhetorical leadership lies the classical concept of prudence, practical wisdom that combines good sense with good character. From their disparate treatments of a range of presidencies, an underlying agreement emerges among the historians, political scientists, and communication scholars included in the volume. To be effective, they find, presidents must be able to articulate the common good in a particular situation and they must be credible on the basis of their own character. Who they are and what they can do are thus twin pillars of successful rhetorical leadership. Leroy G. Dorsey introduces these themes, and David Zarefsky picks them up in looking at the historical development of rhetorical leadership within the office of the presidency. Each succeeding chapter then examines the rhetorical leadership of a particular president, often within the context of a specific incident or challenge that marked his term in office. Chapters dealing with George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton offer the specifics for a clearer understanding of how rhetoric serves leadership in the American presidency. This book provides an indispensable addition to the literature on the presidency and in leadership studies.

Contents:

Introduction : The president as a rhetorical leader / Leroy G. Dorsey

The presidency has always been a place for rhetorical leadership / David Zarefsky

George Washington and the rhetoric of presidential leadership / Stephen E. Lucas

Classical virtue and presidential fame : John Adams, leadership, and the Franco-American crisis / James M. Farrell

Jefferson vs. Napoleon : the limits of rhetoric / Lawrence S. Kaplan

Politics as performance art : the body English of Theodore Roosevelt / H.W. Brands

Presidential leadership and national identity : Woodrow Wilson and the meaning of America / James R. Andrews

FDR at Gettysburg : the New Deal and the rhetoric of presidential leadership / Thomas W. Benson

The hidden hand vs. the bully pulpit : the layered political rhetoric of President Eisenhower / Meena Bose and Fred I. Greenstein

Ronald Reagan and the American dream : a study in rhetoric out of time / G. Thomas Goodnight

Cunning, rhetoric, and the presidency of William Jefferson Clinton / John M. Murphy

Afterword : rhetorical leadership and presidential performance / Leroy G. Dorsey.

Notes:

"The chapters appearing in this volume were first presented at the fifth annual conference on presidential rhetoric held at Texas A&M University's Presidential Conference Center, March 4-7, 1999"--P. [vii].

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1-60344-443-2

1-58544-952-0

OCLC:

50639757