Jean Baudrillard: The Rhetoric of Symbolic Exchange (Rhetoric in the Modern Era)

"This work is the first book-length treatment of Jean Baudrillard as a rhetorical theorist"-- Provided by publisher Jean Baudrillard has been studied as sociologist, philosopher, cultural theorist, political commentator, and photographer. Brian Gogan establishes him as a rhetorician, demonstrating how the histories, traditions, and practices of rhetoric prove central to his use of language. In addition to Baudrillard's standard works, Gogan examines many of the scholar's lesser-known writings that have never been analyzed by rhetoricians, and this more comprehensive approach presents fresh perspectives on Baudrillard's work as a whole. Gogan examines both the theorist and his rhetoric, combining these two lines of inquiry in ways that allow for provocative insights. Part one of the book explains Baudrillard's theory as compatible with the histories and traditions of rhetoric, outlining his novel understanding of rhetorical invention as involving thought, discourse, and perception. Part two evaluates Baudrillard's work in terms of a perception of him—as an aphorist, an illusionist, an ignoramus, and an ironist. A biographical sketch and a critical review of the literature on Baudrillard and rhetoric round out the study. This book makes the French theorist's complex concepts understandable and relates them to the work of important thinkers, providing a thorough and accessible introduction to Baudrillard's ideas. Cover Rhetoric in the Modern Era Title Page Copyright Contents Short Titles A Note on Baudrillard's Original French Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Cross-Disciplinary Perceptions 2. Biographical Sketch Part 1 3. Rhetoric, Sophistry, and Appearance-Making 4. Baudrillard's Art of Appearance 5. Baudrillard's Art of Disappearance 6. Symbolic Exchange and Rhetorical Invention Part 2 7. Appearing as Aphorist 8. Appearing as Illusionist 9. Appearing as Ignoramus 10. Appearing as Ironist Conclusion 11. Rhetoric, Invention, and Symbolic Exchange Appendix Notes Works Cited Index About the Author Other Titles in the Series Back Cover