Burke on Rhetoric: Superman, Reboots & Ruling Power

📚 A Rhetoric of Motives: Traditional Principles of Rhetoric (Part 7) | Dr. Bobby 🎙️

Welcome back to our deep dive into Kenneth Burke’s A Rhetoric of Motives! I’m Dr. Bobby, “The Best Assistant Professor Who Never Was,” and today, we’re tackling Burke’s exploration of traditional rhetorical principles, dialectical oppositions, and how they manifest in literature, politics, and even pop culture.

🔍 In this episode, we discuss: ✔️ The scene-act and agent-act ratios in rhetoric ✔️ Burke’s take on dialectical natures and binary oppositions ✔️ How DC Comics’ Superman Red / Superman Blue reflects Burke’s rhetorical analysis ✔️ The role of editorial influence in character reboots and continuity shifts ✔️ The intersection of rhetoric, persuasion, mystery, and psychoanalysi ...