Retoryka w Skandynawii

2022-05-13

Rhetoric is an established academic discipline in Scandinavia. From its beginnings as a side interest and field of study for scholars in literature, philology and linguistics, rhetoric has grown and expanded as a discipline throughout the last fifty years. Today, there are rhetoric sections at 8 universities across Denmark, Sweden and Norway, the journal Rhetorica Scandinavica is in its 25th year of circulation, students can earn BA, MA, and Ph.D. degrees, scholars meet at the bi-annual Nordic Conference for Rhetoric Studies (NKRF), numerous scholarly publications and textbooks in the Scandinavian languages are published, and a Nordic Rhetoric Society has been formed.

The growth of rhetoric in Scandinavia raises some obvious questions: What characterizes rhetoric as a scholarly discipline in Scandinavia? And if there is something distinctive about Scandinavian rhetoric, then how does it supplement, differ from, or resemble rhetoric as an academic field in other regions of the world? What are its strengths and weaknesses?

If there is a rhetoric with a distinct Scandinavian character, we hope to shed light on what it is and how it came to be that way. Equally important is to highlight how rhetoric scholars in Scandinavia contribute to international research agendas.

We welcome contributions discussing such themes as:

  • Rhetorical theory, analysis, didactics, and/or pedagogy in Scandinavia
  • The intellectual history of Scandinavian rhetoric
  • Scandinavian critical reception of classical or “global” rhetorical theory
  • Original rhetorical theory developed in Scandinavia
  • Commonalities and differences across the Scandinavian countries’ traditions
  • Structural and institutional factors in the discipline’s development
  • The future of Scandinavian rhetoric: Challenges, new research frontiers
  • The relevance of other internationally prominent scholarly discussions/schools/fields of study for Scandinavian rhetoric.
  • The interdisciplinarity of Scandinavian rhetorical studies
  • Third stream activities of rhetoricians
  • Particularities of applying rhetorical theory in the Scandinavian languages
  • Scandinavian rhetorical culture
  • Rhetoric in Scandinavia before the 1970’s

We welcome historical, theoretical and critical essays, research review articles and empirical studies.

  • Deadline for abstract submission: August 15, 2022
  • Deadline for article submission: March 15, 2023
  • Planned publication date: second half of 2023

Articles for this special issue will be selected based on submitted abstracts. Abstracts should be 500-700 words long and written in English. Abstracts should include a sketch of the article’s content and research questions and indicate its theoretical and methodological basis. Send your abstract to tommy.bruhn@hum.ku.dk.

In connection to this special issue, the Nordic Rhetoric Society will arrange workshops and seminars for contributing authors.

Issue editors:

Tommy Bruhn & Lisa S. Villadsen, University of Copenhagen

Ewa Modrzejewska, University of Warsaw