Paul Ricoeur: Tradition and Innovation in Rhetorical Theory

This is the first book to systematically explore contemporary continental philosopher Paul Ricoeur's contribution to modem rhetorical theory. Andreea Deciu Ritivoi analyzes provocative test cases and investigates four topics central to the core vocabulary of the field-opinion, practical reasoning, commemora­tion, and solidarity. Her findings provide clarification on important problems and shed new light on troubling social and political issues. Placing Ricoeur's views in a larger intellectual context, Ritivoi identifies both the philosophical influences that have shaped them over the years and the correspondences with various relevant rhetorical theories. In doing so, she proves that a rhetorical enterprise refashioned with Ricoeur's help enables us to address questions that are crucially relevant to our time yet also grounded in the historical basis of the discipline.