The Rhetoric
and Ideology of Public Monument
For the next
paper, select a peace or war memorial or monument of your choice, and analyze
it in the following ways in order to prove your thesis: Is it a
monument to peace or war? Each of
which is worth 25 points, and will require between 1 ½ and 2 pages each; they
are guides, not individual questions to be answered. Your paragraphs should be coherent in
supporting your thesis.
I.
Kairos.
For a public monument, there are three time zones: the war itself; the initiation
of the monument until its opening; today.
A monument looks backward to a war that is over. For this section, you need to research to
find out the results of the war—was it a victory, a loss, or a tie? What motivated the memorial? How was it received at the time? How is it judged today? We should also know why you chose it. What in your life today attracts you to your
choice?
II.
Intentions.
Monuments are inherently judicial in that they try to capture an
attitude toward a past event, but they are essentially, and by definition,
epideictic or ceremonial. Therefore,
their purpose is to point to our highest values and praise the people who
endorse those values. Being asked to remember people implies that they are
important. In addition, however, a
memorial has a deliberative message that can be intuited. As Aristotle said, “Sometimes to praise is to
urge a course of action.” What course of
action does your memorial imply is necessary? In this section, you will discuss
the purposes of the memorial. Some of
the intentions are explicit (as we can see from the Maya Lin video); others,
implicit.
III.
Persuasion.
In this section, analyze ethos, logos, and pathos. Ethos is measured not by the artist; but by
the representation of the soldiers or citizens or victims. What message do we get about the people or
person celebrated or memorialized? As
for logos, you can focus on all the written material that surrounds the
memorial—sometimes heavily inscribed, as in the Gallipoli monument; other
times, adjacent or surrounding the monument.
The logos can also refer to the “facts of the memory,” though they may
be controversial. For pathos, you have a
wide open window. Art is designed to
have an effect, and that effect on the viewer, participant, student, scholar
should be carefully considered in the design.
(We hear Lin talk about what feelings she wants to evoke.) In this section, you can also discuss how the
monument makes you feel. A war memorial
has a double message; it honors the soldiers but calls us to peace at the same
time. You decide which message you get
from your memorial. Also, does it
inspire hope or fear (use Bloch)?
IV.
Imagery and figuration.
Unlike your last paper, the figuration won’t be primarily in
language. Indeed, we use sculpture when words
are insufficient. Any monument will
include figures, images of humans; however, they will be transformed
symbolically; they will be exaggerated to make a point. In fact, they will be turned from people into
symbols. Symbolism, in its ideal form, creates
an image beyond rhetoric or occasion.
The symbol suggests an idea.
Think of the Statue of Liberty, for instance. If it works, that image will carry forth its
message regardless of time and place. So
symbolism is an attempt to move beyond rhetoric. But it does not move beyond persuasion. It is still a sign and has meaning, based on
the audience, and the artist. Other
natural objects may be heightened and renewed too—animals, plants, flowers, and
so on. On the other hand, as we see in
the 9/11 Monument, shapes themselves take on meaning. Of course, with Maya Lin’s work, you have the
use of water. So in this section, try to
analyze the symbolic purposes of the shapes, materials, and representations of
humans, plants, or animals. You may need
some research to understand the symbolism of certain imagery.
The Rhetoric
and Ideology of Public Monument
For the next
paper, select a peace or war memorial or monument of your choice, and analyze
it in the following ways in order to prove your thesis: Is it a
monument to peace or war? Each of
which is worth 25 points, and will require between 1 ½ and 2 pages each; they
are guides, not individual questions to be answered. Your paragraphs should be coherent in
supporting your thesis.
I.
Kairos.
For a public monument, there are three time zones: the war itself; the initiation
of the monument until its opening; today.
A monument looks backward to a war that is over. For this section, you need to research to
find out the results of the war—was it a victory, a loss, or a tie? What motivated the memorial? How was it received at the time? How is it judged today? We should also know why you chose it. What in your life today attracts you to your
choice?
II.
Intentions.
Monuments are inherently judicial in that they try to capture an
attitude toward a past event, but they are essentially, and by definition,
epideictic or ceremonial. Therefore,
their purpose is to point to our highest values and praise the people who
endorse those values. Being asked to remember people implies that they are
important. In addition, however, a
memorial has a deliberative message that can be intuited. As Aristotle said, “Sometimes to praise is to
urge a course of action.” What course of
action does your memorial imply is necessary? In this section, you will discuss
the purposes of the memorial. Some of
the intentions are explicit (as we can see from the Maya Lin video); others,
implicit.
III.
Persuasion.
In this section, analyze ethos, logos, and pathos. Ethos is measured not by the artist; but by
the representation of the soldiers or citizens or victims. What message do we get about the people or
person celebrated or memorialized? As
for logos, you can focus on all the written material that surrounds the
memorial—sometimes heavily inscribed, as in the Gallipoli monument; other
times, adjacent or surrounding the monument.
The logos can also refer to the “facts of the memory,” though they may
be controversial. For pathos, you have a
wide open window. Art is designed to
have an effect, and that effect on the viewer, participant, student, scholar
should be carefully considered in the design.
(We hear Lin talk about what feelings she wants to evoke.) In this section, you can also discuss how the
monument makes you feel. A war memorial
has a double message; it honors the soldiers but calls us to peace at the same
time. You decide which message you get
from your memorial. Also, does it
inspire hope or fear (use Bloch)?
IV.
Imagery and figuration.
Unlike your last paper, the figuration won’t be primarily in
language. Indeed, we use sculpture when words
are insufficient. Any monument will
include figures, images of humans; however, they will be transformed
symbolically; they will be exaggerated to make a point. In fact, they will be turned from people into
symbols. Symbolism, in its ideal form, creates
an image beyond rhetoric or occasion.
The symbol suggests an idea.
Think of the Statue of Liberty, for instance. If it works, that image will carry forth its
message regardless of time and place. So
symbolism is an attempt to move beyond rhetoric. But it does not move beyond persuasion. It is still a sign and has meaning, based on
the audience, and the artist. Other
natural objects may be heightened and renewed too—animals, plants, flowers, and
so on. On the other hand, as we see in
the 9/11 Monument, shapes themselves take on meaning. Of course, with Maya Lin’s work, you have the
use of water. So in this section, try to
analyze the symbolic purposes of the shapes, materials, and representations of
humans, plants, or animals. You may need
some research to understand the symbolism of certain imagery.
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