The son of John Vester and Dorothy Eloise (Hicks) McGee, he spent his early years in Knoxville, Tennessee. He graduated with a B.A. in Speech from Butler University, where he was a champion debater. In 1967 he graduated with an M.A. in Rhetoric from Cornell University. In 1973 he married Lyda Eugenia Twitty. In 1974 he received his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa, writing his dissertation "Edmund Burke's Beautiful Lie: An Exploration of the Relationship between Rhetoric and Social Theory" under Donald C. Bryant. He received some criticism for his teaching because of his staunch liberalism, which affected his teaching style, but despite this, he was still a very sought-after professor, teaching at major universities in the United States such as the University of Alabama, the University of Memphis, and the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He is known for his materialistic views of rhetoric, summarized from the lesser-known McGee essay "The Practical Identity of Thought and Its Expression".[1] In 1979 he moved to Iowa City, where he settled in at the University of Iowa.
Major contributionsedit
McGee had many major contributions in the realm of rhetoric and cultural studies. He published three major works: Rhetoric in Postmodern America, The Ideograph: A Link between Rhetoric and Ideology, and Text, Context, and the Fragmentation of Contemporary Culture.[2] The most important of these is considered to be his second major work, The Ideograph. McGee was the first rhetorical theorist to propose this concept on an ideograph, which he described as, "an ordinary-language term found in political discourse. It is a high-order abstraction representing a commitment to a particular but equivocal and ill-defined normative goal."[3] Also he was a critic of what he saw going on in the world around him. The most well-known of these critiques was his critique of Spike Lee and his association with Nike ads. McGee said that these ads were too racially stereotypical and made a case for Lee to cease these ads but Lee continued with them nonetheless.[4]
McGee was one of the founders of the American Communication Association and a member of the National Communication Association. In his last years, he was very active in virtual rhetorical communities and online debates. McGee founded a website, (f)ragments, for rhetorical research and created a virtual learning community.
Referencesedit
^"ACJ Essay: Embracing the Superficial: Michael Calvin McGee, Rhetoric, and the Postmodern Condition".
^Rhetoric in Postmodern America: Conversations with Michael Calvin McGee. Edited by Carol Corbin. New York: The Guilford Press, 1998
^McGee, M.C. (1980). The "ideograph": A link between rhetoric and ideology. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 66, 1-16.
^Charland, Maurice (1998). "Rhetoric in Postmodern America: Conversations with Michael Calvin Mc Gee". Canadian Journal of Communication. 23 (4). doi:10.22230/cjc.1998v23n4a1067.
External linksedit
American Communication Association
National Communication Association
January 01, 1970
michael, calvin, mcgee, october, 1943, rockwood, tennessee, october, 2002, iowa, city, iowa, american, rhetorical, theorist, writer, social, critic, contents, personal, life, major, contributions, later, life, references, external, linkspersonal, life, editthe. Michael Calvin McGee October 21 1943 in Rockwood Tennessee October 27 2002 in Iowa City Iowa was an American rhetorical theorist writer and social critic Contents 1 Personal life 2 Major contributions 3 Later life 4 References 5 External linksPersonal life editThe son of John Vester and Dorothy Eloise Hicks McGee he spent his early years in Knoxville Tennessee He graduated with a B A in Speech from Butler University where he was a champion debater In 1967 he graduated with an M A in Rhetoric from Cornell University In 1973 he married Lyda Eugenia Twitty In 1974 he received his Ph D from the University of Iowa writing his dissertation Edmund Burke s Beautiful Lie An Exploration of the Relationship between Rhetoric and Social Theory under Donald C Bryant He received some criticism for his teaching because of his staunch liberalism which affected his teaching style but despite this he was still a very sought after professor teaching at major universities in the United States such as the University of Alabama the University of Memphis and the University of Wisconsin Madison He is known for his materialistic views of rhetoric summarized from the lesser known McGee essay The Practical Identity of Thought and Its Expression 1 In 1979 he moved to Iowa City where he settled in at the University of Iowa Major contributions editMcGee had many major contributions in the realm of rhetoric and cultural studies He published three major works Rhetoric in Postmodern America The Ideograph A Link between Rhetoric and Ideology and Text Context and the Fragmentation of Contemporary Culture 2 The most important of these is considered to be his second major work The Ideograph McGee was the first rhetorical theorist to propose this concept on an ideograph which he described as an ordinary language term found in political discourse It is a high order abstraction representing a commitment to a particular but equivocal and ill defined normative goal 3 Also he was a critic of what he saw going on in the world around him The most well known of these critiques was his critique of Spike Lee and his association with Nike ads McGee said that these ads were too racially stereotypical and made a case for Lee to cease these ads but Lee continued with them nonetheless 4 Later life editThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed May 2019 Learn how and when to remove this message McGee was one of the founders of the American Communication Association and a member of the National Communication Association In his last years he was very active in virtual rhetorical communities and online debates McGee founded a website f ragments for rhetorical research and created a virtual learning community References edit ACJ Essay Embracing the Superficial Michael Calvin McGee Rhetoric and the Postmodern Condition Rhetoric in Postmodern America Conversations with Michael Calvin McGee Edited by Carol Corbin New York The Guilford Press 1998 McGee M C 1980 The ideograph A link between rhetoric and ideology Quarterly Journal of Speech 66 1 16 Charland Maurice 1998 Rhetoric in Postmodern America Conversations with Michael Calvin Mc Gee Canadian Journal of Communication 23 4 doi 10 22230 cjc 1998v23n4a1067 External links editAmerican Communication Association National Communication Association Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Michael Calvin McGee amp oldid 1178009774, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
