Marshall Mcluhan's Neo-Medieval Communication Theory (Doctoral Dissertation, Duquesne University)
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Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Spring 2012 The rT iptych Tetrad: Marshall McLuhan's Neo- Medieval Communication Theory Anthony Wachs Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Wachs, A. (2012). The rT iptych Tetrad: Marshall McLuhan's Neo-Medieval Communication Theory (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/1320 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE TRIPTYCH TETRAD: MARSHALL MCLUHAN‘S NEO-MEDIEVAL COMMUNICATION THEORY A Dissertation Submitted to the McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for The degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Anthony M. Wachs May 2012 Copyright by Anthony M. Wachs 2012 THE TRIPTYCH TETRAD: MARSHALL MCLUHAN‘S NEO-MEDIEVAL COMMUNICATION THEORY By Anthony M. Wachs Approved March 23, 2012 ______________________________ _________________________________ Dr. Ronald C. Arnett, Chair Dr. Janie M. Harden Fritz Department of Communication & Associate Professor, Department of Rhetorical Studies Communication & Rhetorical Studies (Dissertation Director) (First Reader) _________________________________ _________________________________ Dr. Richard Thames Dr. James Swindal, Dean Associate Professor, Department of McAnulty College and Graduate School Communication & Rhetorical Studies of Liberal Arts (Second Reader) iii ABSTRACT THE TRIPTYCH TETRAD: MARSHALL MCLUHAN‘S NEO-MEDIEVAL COMMUNICATION THEORY By Anthony M. Wachs May 2012 Dissertation supervised by Dr. Ronald C. Arnett The work of Marshall McLuhan has often been reduced to the form of catchphrases and ―McLuhanisms,‖ such as the ―global village‖ and ―the medium is the message‖ in the field of communication. Though these phrases capture an aspect of his thought, the scholarly understanding of McLuhan‘s vision remains incomplete, even within the specialized area of Media Ecology, of which McLuhan is recognized as the intellectual father. Throughout his corpus, McLuhan makes reference to the classical and medieval trivium, which was the basis for education throughout Western history until the Renaissance. Indeed, he developed a history of the trivium up to the Renaissance in order to understand the works of Thomas Nashe. At the end of his life, he worked to synthesize his views on technology, media, and communication, and the arts of the trivium— grammar, logic, and rhetoric—which were essential to these works. Consequently, this iv project details the connection between the classical and medieval trivium and McLuhan‘s tetrad, which was the heuristic tool that advanced as New Science for the twentieth and twenty first centuries. By detailing this connection, the tetrad is a tool that advances a neo-Medieval theory of communication. In its essence, the neo-Medieval communication theory is attentive to the linguistic essence of the cosmos, is attentive to the transformative nature of understanding, and unifies the human person within a perceptual and poetic understanding of the world. v DEDICATION To Pope Benedict XVI who, like Marshall McLuhan, has sought to compliment the secular world and the Church through the promotion of tradition. To my family: Melisa, my strength and example in faith. J. Michael R., J. Stephen D., and J. Benedict A., mei filii, always seek out Goodness, Truth and Beauty. To my parents, David and Marilyn: Thank you for your generosity, for all the prayers, and Catholic faith in which you raised me. To Father Justin M. Wachs: Thank you for all the Masses you have said and your example of true paideia. To the rest of my family: Thank you for tolerating me. To His Excellency, Most Reverend Archbishop Robert J. Carlson: Your friendship is priceless; I do not know who I would be without your guidance. Thank you for everything you have done to help form me into the man that I now am. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are several people to which I would like to acknowledge for the completion of this project. This project would not exist without their help. To begin with I must acknowledge the Triune God. Without His grace only He knows where I would be at this time. In addition to Him, my patron Saint Anthony of Padua—orator, Hammer of Heretics, and patron of lost things—must be acknowledged. Throughout my life, there have been several moments in which I thought I had completely lost my mind and touch with reality, he helped me to find them. On an academic level, I would like to thank several people. In particular, I would like to thank Dr. Ronald Arnett, my advisor. He has shown me how to constructively perform scholarship and educate students. Dr. Janie Harden Fritz must be acknowledged for her example of generosity and grace to which she has shown me and all of her students. I would also like to thank Dr. Richard Thames for his enthusiasm for lifelong learning and his insight into the saving of appearances. I would like to thank the three of you for the truly Catholic environment that you have created at Duquesne University. On a personal level there are several people who also need to be acknowledged. I must also acknowledge my lifelong friend John Jasso who pushed me to move on to doctoral studies and pointed me toward this project. Additionally, his beautiful family has continued to provide support and friendship to my family. My parents, David and Marilyn, should be thanked for their constant love and encouragement. My brother, Father Justin M. Wachs, whom I am honored to call my brother, must be acknowledged for his constant prayers and for his example as a person of true paideia. I would also like to thank and acknowledge my wife, Melisa. You are my strength, my companion, my source of inspiration, my muse and my love! Finally, I vii would like to thank my children for allowing me to complete this project. J. Michael R., always protect your heart of gold. J. Stephen D., always remember to use your strength for justice and the promotion of the Good. J. Benedict A., harness your feisty and inquisitive temperament and seek out that which is Good and Beautiful in the world. Thank you all! Pax Domini Sit Semper Vobis Cum viii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... iv DEDICATION ............................................................................................................... vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................... vii Chapter 1: An Introduction to Marshall McLuhan ........................................................... 1 Introduction............................................................................................................................. 2 Continuing Import of McLuhan‘s Project ................................................................................ 4 McLuhan and the Trivium Tradition ........................................................................................ 8 McLuhan‘s Preliminary Explorations into Media ................................................................... 16 Responses to McLuhan‘s Early Conceptualizations ............................................................... 18 The Road to Systematizing the Laws of Media ...................................................................... 22 McLuhan‘s Tetrad ................................................................................................................. 26 Overview of the Project ......................................................................................................... 34 Chapter 2: The Figure of the Tetrad ............................................................................... 41 Introduction........................................................................................................................... 42 The Laws of Media/The Tetrad.............................................................................................. 43 Visualizing the Laws of Media .......................................................................................... 46 Causality ........................................................................................................................... 50 Application of the Tetrad ....................................................................................................... 58 Ancient and Modern Tetrads .............................................................................................. 58 (Mis)uses of the Tetrad ...................................................................................................... 61 Implications .......................................................................................................................... 65 Chapter 3: Perception and the Figure of the Tetrad ........................................................ 68 Introduction........................................................................................................................... 68 The Senses, Ratio, and Extension .......................................................................................... 70 Sensus Communis ............................................................................................................