Illinois State University ISU ReD: Research and eData Theses and Dissertations 7-11-2019 Toward A Theory Of Procedural Rhetorical Systems: Demonstrations Of Player Agency In Uptake Of Rules In Video Games Sydney A. Klem Illinois State University,
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd Part of the Communication Commons, and the Rhetoric Commons Recommended Citation Klem, Sydney A., "Toward A Theory Of Procedural Rhetorical Systems: Demonstrations Of Player Agency In Uptake Of Rules In Video Games" (2019). Theses and Dissertations. 1167. https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/1167 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by ISU ReD: Research and eData. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ISU ReD: Research and eData. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. TOWARD A THEORY OF PROCEDURAL RHETORICAL SYSTEMS: DEMONSTRATIONS OF PLAYER AGENCY IN UPTAKE OF RULES IN VIDEO GAMES SYDNEY A KLEM 121 Pages This paper expands Ian Bogost’s (2007) procedural rhetoric by broadening the rhetorical view of games to encompass the arguments that they make not just about the material, but about themselves. The theory of procedural rhetorical systems (PRSes) views game systems as arguing toward how players should be following their rules, and like in any form of rhetoric, players possess agency in how they take up these arguments and how closely they follow rules. To demonstrate this, this paper analyzes a specific game, the 1996 platformer Super Mario 64, alongside various digital artifacts demonstrating how players have taken it up, including videos, forum discussions, wiki entries, and comments.