Definition and Examples of Apologia in Rhetoric

Definition: In classical rhetoric, communication studies, and public relations, an apologia is a  speech that defends, justifies, and/or apologizes for an action or statement. Plural: apologia. Adjective: apologetic. Also known as a  speech of self-defense. In an article* in the Quarterly Journal of Speech (1973), B.L. Ware and W.A. Linkugel identified four common strategies in apologetic discourse: denial (directly or indirectly rejecting the substance, intent, or consequence of the questionable act) bolstering (attempting to enhance the image of the individual under attack) differentiation (distinguishing the questionable act from more serious or harmful actions) transcendence (placing the act in a different context) *They Spoke in Defense of Themselves: On the Generic Criticism of Apologia See Examples and Observations below. Also see: OratoryPersuasionRhetoric What Are the Three Branches of Rhetoric? EtymologyFrom the Greek, away from speech Examples and Observations There may be several purposes for apologia rhetoric, including to explain the behavior or statement in a positive light, justify the behavior to minimize damage to image and character, or remove the topic from public discussion so that other issues may be discussed.(Colleen E. Kelley, The Rhetoric of First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton: Crisis Management Discourse. Praeger, 2001) The Rhetoric of Damage ControlSome genres are so complex and high stakes that they require a special kind of rhetorical maneuvering and critical assessment. One such animal is what Aristotle called an apologia--or what we label today as the rhetoric of self-defense, damage-control, image-repair, or crisis management. . . .Its indebtedness to all three genres [deliberative, judicial, and epideictic], but its allegiance to none, makes the apologia a challenging rhetorical hybrid to create and critique (Campbell Huxman, 2003, pp. 293-294). . . . .The genre [of apologia] is a public purging of sins and a reaffirm ation of the ethical norms of society dressed up in theatrical proportions to bring pleasure to spectators; it is the most intimate form of secular discourse. Success in this arena requires a let it all hang out (remorse, pride, outrage) approach. The visual media are especially equipped to provide the excess and exaggeration that this type of theater demands.(Susan Schultz Huxman, Exigencies, Explanations, and Executions: Toward a Dynamic Theory of the Crisis Communications Genre. Responding to Crisis: A Rhetorical Approach to Crisis Communication, ed. by Dan P. Millar and Robert L. Heath. Lawrence Erlbaum, 2004) BP CEOs Apologia for the Gulf Oil Spill (May 31, 2010)The first thing to say is Im sorry. . . . We’re sorry for the massive disruption it’s caused their lives. There’s no one who wants this over more than I do. I would like my life back.†(Tony Hayward, televised speech in Venice, Louisiana, May 31, 2010) Bill Clintons Apologia: The Monica Lewinsk y Affair (Aug. 17, 1998)Good evening.This afternoon in this room, from this chair, I testified before the Office of Independent Counsel and the grand jury.I answered their questions truthfully, including questions about my private life, questions no American citizen would ever want to answer.Still, I must take complete responsibility for all my actions, both public and private. And that is why I am speaking to you tonight.As you know, in a deposition in January, I was asked questions about my relationship with Monica Lewinsky. While my answers were legally accurate, I did not volunteer information.Indeed, I did have a relationship with Miss Lewinsky that was not appropriate. In fact, it was wrong. It constituted a critical lapse in judgment and a personal failure on my part for which I am solely and completely responsible.But I told the grand jury today and I say to you now that at no time did I ask anyone to lie, to hide or destroy evidence or to take any other unlawful action.I kn ow that my public comments and my silence about this matter gave a false impression. I misled people, including even my wife. I deeply regret that.I can only tell you I was motivated by many factors. First, by a desire to protect myself from the embarrassment of my own conduct.I was also very concerned about protecting my family. The fact that these questions were being asked in a politically inspired lawsuit, which has since been dismissed, was a consideration, too.In addition, I had real and serious concerns about an independent counsel investigation that began with private business dealings 20 years ago, dealings I might add about which an independent federal agency found no evidence of any wrongdoing by me or my wife over two years ago.The independent counsel investigation moved on to my staff and friends, then into my private life. And now the investigation itself is under investigation.This has gone on too long, cost too much and hurt too many innocent people.Now, this matter is between me, the two people I love most--my wife and our daughter--and our God. I must put it right, and I am prepared to do whatever it takes to do so.Nothing is more important to me personally. But it is private, and I intend to reclaim my family life for my family. Its nobodys business but ours.Even presidents have private lives. It is time to stop the pursuit of personal destruction and the prying into private lives and get on with our national life.Our country has been distracted by this matter for too long, and I take my responsibility for my part in all of this. That is all I can do.Now it is time--in fact, it is past time to move on.We have important work to do--real opportunities to seize, real problems to solve, real security matters to face.And so tonight, I ask you to turn away from the spectacle of the past seven months, to repair the fabric of our national discourse, and to return our attention to all the challenges and all the promise of the next American century.Th ank you for watching. And good night.(President Bill Clinton, televised speech to the American public, August 17, 1998) Pronunciation: AP-eh-LOW-je-eh

Thomas Hardys The Mayor of Casterbridge Essay - 1450 Words

Thomas Hardys The Mayor of Casterbridge. Sex is so intertwined in our society that it pervades each facet, including television, books, advertising, and conversation. Movies like The Matrix toss in gratuitous sex because the audience nearly expects it. Thomas Hardys The Mayor of Casterbridge, therefore, is exceptional in its lack of sexual situations. The subject of sexual motivation and its inherent ambiguity with regard to Henchards actions is a topic that caught my attention from the very first pages of The Mayor of Casterbridge. Continually in the novel there is tension, but it is never described as sexual. Much the same, there are countless marriages during the novel but no related sexual attraction is discussed. The†¦show more content†¦It seems that for Henchard, maturity involves a kind of assimilation of female suffering, an identification with a woman which is also an effort to come to terms with with [his] own deepest sel[f] (Showalter, 394). It is not until the end of the novel that Henchard realizes th is, withdraws from society, and loses his will to live. However, his wrongdoings are not completely restricted to women. For this reason, I believe that this indicates not misdirected sexual energy, but a general lack of knowledge. Henchards act of selling his wife had clearly been mentioned between husband and wife prior to the actual incident, but that does not mean that it was well thought out. In fact, it seems that Henchard rarely thought things out to a full extent. Selling his wife in the first place would lead me to believe that he never loved Susan at all. I married at eighteen, like the fool that I was; and this is the consequence. But a fellow never knows these little things till all chance of acting upon em is past (9). Further, this quote shows that Henchard did not even think thoroughly about marrying Susan. He claims that he was a fool because he was eighteen; I say that at this point in the novel, he had not grown emotionally in the least. Likewise, Henchards relationship with Lucetta seems to be centered on a debt he felt he owed her forShow MoreRelated Human Destiny and Chance in Thomas Hardys The Mayor of Casterbridge1228 Words   |  5 PagesHuman Destiny and Chance in Thomas Hardys The Mayor of Casterbridge Present readers might perceive that Thomas Hardys viewpoint in the novel The Mayor of Casterbridge is severe and depressing. However, most people adored Hardy during his living years. In an era when the Industrial Revolution was bringing dramatic and sometimes disturbing changes to England, he celebrated the nations roots in its rustic past. In an era when new ideas like Darwins theory of evolution challenged long establishedRead MoreJohn Hardy s Far From The Madding Crowd And The Mayor Of Casterbridge1544 Words   |  7 Pagesresolutions. In Thomas Hardy’s famous works Far From the Madding Crowd and The Mayor of Casterbridge, the differing portrayals of relationships and style of characterization dictate the theme and overall likeability of the two rather similar novels. Despite the similarities, the positively thematic ideals depicted by Bathsheba Everdene and Gabriel Oak’s complex relationship in Far From the Madding Crowd rivals that of Michael and Susan Hench ard’s toxic relationship in The Mayor of Casterbridge, causingRead More Essay on Fate and Chance in The Mayor of Casterbridge1615 Words   |  7 PagesFate and Chance in The Mayor of Casterbridge  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Thomas Hardys disillusionment over religion was a major theme in both his novels and his poetry. In his mind there was a conflict over whether fate or chance ruled us. He explores this dilemma in the poems I Look Into My Glass and Going and Staying. Each poem takes a different stance on the matter. It is up to the novel The Mayor of Casterbridge to illuminate which position he ultimately adopts. The poem I Look Into My GlassRead MoreThe Mayor Of Casterbridge, By Thomas Hardy907 Words   |  4 Pagesopportunities for the characters in Thomas Hardy s novel, The Mayor of Casterbridge, to embrace and experience this necessary growth, there is an absence of such personal advancement and progress. Ultimately, the decisions and actions of Michael Henchard, Lucetta Le Sueur, Donald Farfrae, and Elizabeth Jane all demonstrate repetitive qualities and a lack of character development which either assist or hinder the justice and moral order of the characters’ fates. Throughout Hardy’s plot driven novel, the trueRead MoreThe Life And Death Of The Mayor Of Casterbridge1275 Words   |  6 PagesAs it’s full title, The Life and Death of the Mayor of Casterbridge: A Story of a Man of Character, indicates, the novel is concerned with the representation of the rise and fall, joys and sorrows, and triumph and defeat of its central character, Michael Henchard, where happiness seems as rare as an oasis in a vast dreary desert of sorrow and misfortune. Considered one of Thomas Hardy’s most masterful works, The Mayor of Casterbridge, is first and foremost an Aristotelian tragedy of the most movingRead MoreThe Setting and Symbols in the Mayor of Casterbridge1388 Words   |  6 Pagesconsider The Mayor of Casterbridge one of Hardy ¡Ã‚ ¯s two great novels. Of all the Wessex ¡Ã‚ ¯s novels, however, this is the least typical. Although it makes much less use of the physical environment than do the others, we still cannot ignore the freq uently use of symbols and setting in the novel. In my essay, I ¡Ã‚ ®ll analyze the function of the symbols and the setting in The Mayor of Casterbridge. THE SETTING AND SYMBOLS IN THE MAYOR OF CASTERBRIDGE The setting place of this novel is Casterbridge (England)Read MoreEssay on Mayor of Casterbridge Tragic Hero1482 Words   |  6 PagesCole Magee AP Literature Block 2 10/16/2012 The Effects of a Tragic Hero in The Mayor of Casterbridge by: Thomas Hardy Within the novel The Mayor of Casterbridge, Hardy’s main character, Henchard, is displayed as a tragic hero who has started off in a high position but has fallen due to an unacknowledged tragic flaw. Henchard becomes an instrument for the suffering of the women around him, resulting from his ultimate failure to recognize his rash behavior. Henchard’s former wife, love affairRead More Thomas Hardys Tragic Stories796 Words   |  4 PagesThomas Hardys Tragic Stories For centuries, various writers have endeavored to encapsulate the constituents of tragedy, and create works of literature that adhere to their understanding of an ostensibly universal system of tragic structure, tragic plot, and tragic theme. Nevertheless, the etymology of the word, tragedy, proves to be as elusive and arcane as the tragic construct is seemingly concrete and unequivocal; indeed, the word, tragedy, can be traced to the Greek word, tragoidiaRead MoreThe Mayor of Casterbridge1523 Words   |  7 PagesThe Mayor of Casterbridge 1. Discuss the ways in which Hardy has raised awareness of social issues in the readers of The Mayor of Casterbridge. The Mayor of Casterbridge written by Thomas Hardy in 1884/85 reflects upon the Progression of Modernism during the first half of the 19th century English society that was progressing in a difficult transition from a pre-industrial Britain to â€Å"modern† Victorian times. Much of the action and plot in Hardy’s novel The Mayor of Casterbridge takes placeRead MoreWhat Does the Opening Chapter of the Mayor of Casterbridge Reveal to Us About the Characters, Issues to Come in the Novel and Hardys Style?5016 Words   |  21 Pagescome in the novel and Hardys style? In the first chapter of the Mayor of Casterbridge, the main characters are introduced to us from the outset (a young family with a small child approaching the village of Weydon-Priors,) with the opening line informing the reader immediately of fundamental characters in the story. Thomas Hardy then immediately moves on to establish the protagonist, prior to conveying images of the village setting to the reader. Thus, Hardy suggests to the reader that the main

Usps and Sony Struggle to Create Lasting Organizational Change free essay sample

When Bill Henderson, postmaster general of US Postal Service (USPS), turned up at the Tour de France in July 1999, things could not have been better. After making loss upon loss, his organization had finally turned things around. USPS was in profit with a strategic five-year plan that was set to see it prosper for years to come. And just to make things even greater, the athlete USPS had sponsored (the guy who was told he would never compete again after being diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1996), had just won the worlds most prestigious cycling competition. What a difference three years can make. On a downward trend Since that summers day, USPS has free-wheeled downhill in spectacular fashion. In the fiscal year ending September 2001, profit had turned to loss of around $1. 6 billion (less than projected but hardly a success), Budgets were cut and capital spending halted. Then came the terrorist attacks of 11 September and the subsequent anthrax assaults on employees of USPS. This only served to make matters worse for the postal firm and so once again, it was back to the drawing board. Failing to sustain change initiatives And USPS is not alone in its failure to implement a successful change initiative. According to recent research by Change Management Online, UK businesses undertake at least three major change projects a year (at a cost of approximately 52 billion in management time alone) yet half of these programs fail to make any lasting impact whatsoever. Whilst USPS faced a bigger challenge than most by attempting to turn the whole organization around (the ultimate change initiative), the fact that it made such a strong start left executives wondering, when things went awry, where did it all go wrong? Admittedly, transforming USPS into a profit-making outfit looked like something of an impossible task due to its unusual position. The USPS is a huge regulated monopoly and consequently has a number of legal obligations (e. g. new products and services cannot be introduced without lengthy discussions). In addition, competitors such as FedEx and UPS continue to offer more than just regular delivery and in doing so, justify the premium prices they charge. But despite these potential obstacles, executives at USPS realized that without some fundamental changes, the company was sure to go under. Initially, back in 1992, postmaster general Martin Runyon had tried to cut costs through staffing cutbacks however this approach had failed. Consequently, in 1994 Runyon decided that the way to achieve success was by setting aggressive operational goals that would improve efficiency and service. Improving service, improving profits To this effect, USPS launched a website containing useful information such as ZIP codes and pricing lists, experimented with internet kiosks, created a system for issuing electronic postmarks and began to develop an overnight shipping program in order to speed up deliveries. These initiatives paid off and between 1996 and 1999 the organization enjoyed a relatively stable period that also saw Bill Henderson take over from Runyon as postmaster general in 1998. Five-year plans were published and USPS moved towards its vision of becoming a twenty-first century growth company. Factors for failure So what went wrong? In between 1998 and 2001, USPS plummeted from a net income of $550 million to losses of approximately $1. 7 billion. Robert Reisner, former vice president of strategic planning for the company, identified a number of underlying problems that contributed to the failure f this promising turnaround: * USPSs new approach was disorienting to many managers. Some senior executives believed the aggressive targets set by Runyon were impossible whilst others felt that the organization was not focussing enough on its core business; * Despite the high morale that existed within USPS around 1999, senior management failed to capitalize on this momentum and missed out on the opportunity to secure support of employees throughout the company; * Some managers simply resisted the change. These executives felt that electronic services were unlikely to pose a major threat to the postal service for many years to come and consequently saw experiments with the Internet and electronic signatures as a waste of resources; * Ever present were the constraints of being a regulated monopoly. For example, a lucrative deal with Amazon. com was impossible due to regulations and meant that it was UPS and not the postal service that reaped the benefits of such a strategic alliance; and * Despite its impressive jump into the black, USPS had not actually made any structural, cultural or strategic transformations. By improving its service it had simply made incremental changes. This meant that threats such as email technology were never fully addressed. Reisner points out that, ultimately, USPS did not look to the long term, nor did it effect the necessary strategic changes. Without such a transformation it was inevitable that this turnaround would not be sustained. In many senses USPS is back to square one. It may have slightly improved its services, but the threats that were looming as far back as 1994 are still as real as ever. Sonys need for change Perhaps Sony, another organization currently in such a predicament, could learn a few lessons from USPSs mistakes. Although the electronics giant is not suffering from turnaround trauma, it is in the process of transforming itself in order to survive. However Sony may also be running the risk of shortsightedness. Why? The business is currently in limbo. Aware that there is little mileage left in some of its products, it is ready to leave its past behind, yet the future it desires (that of broadband domination) is not quite upon us. According to Business Week, most analysts are forecasting a 40 percent decline in the companys operating profits to just $1 billion on flat sales. It is becoming increasingly clear that Sony needs a new business model, broadband or no broadband. Turning around To combat this dilemma, the organization has: * started to shift its emphasis from making low-margin consoles to selling movies, games and Internet services; * shut down a number of factories in 1999 and pledged to reduce its workforce by 10 percent over the next three years; centralized management of all Sonys factories across the globe, cutting costs by 10 percent; and * started looking towards strategic alliances as a means of increasing revenue. But is this enough? Sony is still a sprawling conglomerate. Business Week likens it to other Japanese electronic giants such as Toshiba or Hitachi, describing them as jacks of all trades and Microsofts of none. In addition, the company still runs many of these smaller businesses (su ch as TVs and cathode tubes) at a loss. Sonys core is still in consumer electronics but this industry is fading fast. The market is already saturated and Sonys core electronic division (about 63 percent of its overall sales) was in the red for the first half of last year. In light of such a dilemma, corporate giants need the help of the Welchs or the Gerstners of this world to shake things up and streamline the business, yet Sony opts instead to promote from within, running the risk of becoming insular in its management techniques. And not only do some critics believe Sonys management system is wrong, they also feel that the brand has lost its technological edge, lagging behind innovative competitors such as Samsung. Incremental changes just not enough Many analysts feel that without radical changes in personnel and structure in the very near future, the star qualities of the Sony brand will gradually fade out altogether. It is encouraging that Sony has started to address these issues, yet whether it is too little too late (the cliche that rings true for so many change initiatives) remains to be seen. One thing both Sony and USPS know for certain is that sustained success is not going to come from a few incremental changes to systems and processes. If you do not change the mindset of your organization, then you are unlikely to after the fortunes of your business, no matter how established you are on the corporate ladder. Management implications The experiences of these two corporations provide some valuable lessons when it comes to sustaining change: To alter your fortunes on a permanent basis, you must change the culture of your organization; Secure the support of as many senior executives as possible. Those who are not happy about the changes you propose may need to re-consider their position within the business; * Do not market your strategy as a one-off change program that will guarantee success forever. Change needs to be continuous in order to maintain competitive advantage and one-off schemes tend to fizzle out after the honeymoon period; * Keep involved with the initiative for as long as possible (we are talking years not months). A common complaint from employees is that once an initiative has been rolled out and sustained for a couple of months, senior management lose interest. Whilst it is not always practical to maintain the same involvement you had at the beginning of the initiative, staying abreast of developments will reassure employees that this change more than just empty management rhetoric; * Know where you are going. Set realistic targets that are sustainable. For example, there is no point growing by 50 percent if the quality of your product will suffer and force you to scale back three years down the line. Comment This review is based upon: When a turnaround stalls by Reisner and Can Sony regain the magic? by I. Kunii et al. When a turnaround stalls is a well-written case study on the mixed fortunes of USPS. Reisner, former vice president for strategic planning within the company, candidly points out how USPS failed to embrace the technological future or gain the support of all its senior management. The article about Sony contains many useful facts and figures that all point to the need for change. As well as focussing upon previous transformational attempts, the authors offer some suggestions on how this electronics corporation can remain in the black.