The Lincoln‐Douglas debates revisited: The evolution of public argument
- 1 May 1986
- journal article
- other
- Published by Taylor & Francis in Quarterly Journal of Speech
- Vol. 72 (2) , 162-184
- https://doi.org/10.1080/00335638609383766
Abstract
The Lincoln‐Douglas debates of 1858 are models not of statesmanship and eloquence, as is sometimes thought, but of strategies and tactics of rhetorical invention in the context of the public forum. The debates were marked by four patterns of argument: conspiratorial, legal, historical, and moral. The dynamics of each pattern are explored and speculations are offered about the transformation of controversial questions in the crucible of public debate.Keywords
This publication has 7 references indexed in Scilit:
- The narrative paradigm: An elaborationCommunication Monographs, 1985
- Narration as a human communication paradigm: The case of public moral argumentCommunication Monographs, 1984
- The Abraham Lincoln EncyclopediaAmerican Political Science Review, 1982
- Lincoln at Cooper Union: A rhetorical analysis of the textQuarterly Journal of Speech, 1974
- Lincoln the speakerQuarterly Journal of Speech, 1935
- Lincoln—the speaker (part IQuarterly Journal of Speech, 1931
- Persuasive methods in the Lincoln‐Douglas debatesQuarterly Journal of Speech, 1927