Presentation
The COVID pandemic crisis has had a wide range of consequences in Brazil: in addition to the irreparable loss of approximately 696,000 lives, whose process of assimilation and mourning is inevitable, we have also faced, among other things, the daily struggle against the systematic denial of science and the effects of routine readjustments.
On this latter point, we regret the impossibility of holding our Congress in João Pessoa/Paraíba, initially planned for the year 2020, which is one reason why the VI Brazilian Congress of Rhetoric in Florianópolis is special: It is going to be an opportunity for us to resume our interlocutions in person and thus share studies and concerns that have motivated us in recent years.
For over thirteen years of activity, the Brazilian Society of Rhetoric has consolidated research in the area, in dialogue with universities and research groups throughout our country, as well as with international institutions such as the Asociación Latinoamericana de Retórica (ALR), the Organización Iberoamericana de Retórica (OIR) and International Society for the History of Rhetoric (ISHR).
Constant concerns at our meetings are the proper representation of the various research trends in Rhetoric in Brazil and the dissemination of the work developed by our researchers, considering their different levels of education and experience. In addition to the submissions of works in traditional thematic axes or lines of research, which form the content base of our event, we have added a topic related to reflections on our recent past called “Rhetoric and the pandemic“.
Finally, we encourage those willing to reflect on the status of Art in relation to Rhetoric, expressed by the comprehensive and interdisciplinary theme: “Rhetorical Art and Other Arts“, which can be developed according to the thematic axis that the participant considers most appropriate (for example: Rhetoric and Music; Rhetoric, Architecture, and Visual Arts; Rhetoric and Performing Arts; Rhetoric and Politics; Rhetoric and Literature; Rhetoric and Classical Studies; History of Rhetoric).
The theme ‘The Rhetorical Art and Other Arts’ indicates important moments in the constitution of the field of Rhetoric, such as Plato’s inclusion of Rhetoric and Oratory in the Gorgias dialogue (4th century BC), marking (and criticizing) the status of Rhetoric in relation to Philosophy, making it a practice of sophists and speakers, more concerned with appearance and verisimilitude than truth, or the systematization of these terms in Aristotle’s Rhetoric (4th century BC), in which it appears both as a capability (dunamis) and as an art (technē) and makes it evident that Rhetoric continues to pose challenges to understanding.
Since the origin of Rhetoric – centered on the universe of oratory in the public domain – to its systematic incorporation in the field of arts, discourse analysis and media communication, one can notice the continuous outbreak of inquiries about the passage from word to image, sound and other forms of sensory perception. So, we propose an investigation into how Rhetoric differs and approaches other technical/artistic knowledge – a realm that includes the universe of the so-called Fine Arts (music, literature, architecture, sculpture, painting, dance, cinema), and other knowledge, such as politics and medicine (at least in the ancient sense). Would Rhetoric be a mere support for the realization of activities, or would Rhetoric have a more fundamental role, with its autonomy, although in dialogue with these areas? Conceived more broadly and in interlocution with other Arts, the question arises: Do the Rhetorical Art and Other Arts have any structural relationship, in such a way that clarification of the former would allow reconsideration of the latter and, conversely, could the investigation of the other Arts clarify the knowledge and praxis of Rhetoric?
In addition to the academic environment that the VI Brazilian Congress of Rhetoric will provide, by gathering Brazilian and foreign researchers, the event will also be the occasion for the Assembly that will elect the new board of the Brazilian Society of Rhetoric (management 2024-25).
See you soon!