VPA’s Vivian to speak on ‘How Lincoln’s Words Defined the United States’ April 23

VPA’s Vivian to speak on ‘How Lincoln’s Words Defined the United States’ April 23April 21, 2009SU News ServicesSUnews@syr.edu

Bradford Vivian, assistant professor of communication and rhetorical studies in Syracuse University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts, will give the talk “A Political Prose for America: How Lincoln’s Words Defined the United States” on Thursday, April 23, at 7 p.m. in the Carman Community Room of the Liverpool Public Library, 310 Tulip St., Liverpool. The talk, which celebrates the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, is free and open to the public.

Historians, politicians, pundits, artists and others generally agree that we now define such basic American ideals as liberty, equality and popular government in the very ways that Lincoln spoke and wrote about them. How did Lincoln’s words originally acquire such profound importance? Why are his speeches and writings still precious-even sacred-to Americans from all walks of life? By addressing such questions, the lecture will demonstrate that appreciating the meaning and artistry of Lincoln’s words remains vital to understanding American history, politics and society in general.

Vivian, who holds a Ph.D. from Pennsylvania State University, conducts research in rhetorical theory and criticism. He was recently honored by the National Communication Association with its Karl R. Wallace Memorial Award, which is given to foster and promote philosophical, historical or critical scholarship in rhetoric and public discourse. He is also author of “Being Made Strange: Rhetoric Beyond Representation” (SUNY Press, 2004). His current research includes two projects: one on the rhetoric of “public forgetting” and one on models of freedom and citizenship in the history of rhetorical theory.

For more information, contact Vivian at (315) 443-5140 or bjvivian@syr.edu.