INFORMAL LOGIC xv. I , Winter 1993 Ideology, Rhetoric and Argument MICHAEL WEILER Emerson College Key Words: Ideology; rhetorie; argumentation; novels to high school textbooks. Its range rhetorical criticism; legitimation; authority; of contexts is similarly broad: from presi­ power; political philosophy. dential campaigns to corporate seminars; Abstract: Rhetorical criticism examines ideology from PTA meetings to private conversa­ as a form of strategic argumentation that functions tions. And its range of methods reflects to legitimize political authority. Ideology presents this breadth as well: from voter survey re­ itself as political philosophy in a way that calls at­ search to close textual reading; from par­ tention to its argumentation. Ideological argu­ ticipant observation to content analysis. ments support claims (1) that those who wield Amid this near infinite variety, however, political power represent the interests of all, and (2) that the existing social order is natural and in­ there is always rhetorical criticism's evitable in light of human nature. Functionally, unique focus: the triangular relationship of ideology is indispensible, but perverse. Formally, persuasive discourse, audience and effect. 2 ideology is argumentation that obscures its Rhetorical criticism of ideology pre­ partiality under claims to universality. supposes that ideology takes the form of persuasive discourse. At a minimum, this My purpose in this essay is to investi­ means that ideology must be isolable as a gate what a rhetorical perspective might verbal text, must be addressed to an actual contribute to the criticism of ideology. audience, and must aim at persuasion. Another way of putting this is to ask Understood as a species of rhetoric, whether and in what ways ideology can be ideology is both generic and unique. Ideol­ viewed as rhetoric. I will suggest that ogy, like all rhetoric, may employ the full though ideology can be located at a range of inventional and figural resources, number of different linguistic levels, and in but presents itself primarily as political a number of rhetorical and perhaps even philosophy. Ideology, like all rhetoric, is non-rhetorical forms, the concerns of the addressed to audiences, but by its nature critic of rhetoric and the critic of ideology obscures the differences among the multi­ coincide most clearly and productively at ple audiences to which it is addressed. Ide­ the point where ideology is seen as a type ology, like all rhetoric, is designed to of strategic argumentation. persuade, but does so by distorting reality The criticism of rhetoric describes, ex­ in distinctive ways. plains and evaluates the effects of forceful Insofar as it assumes rhetorical form, a expression on audiences.' It investigates form open to criticism from a rhetorical instances of persuasive discourse, dis­ perspective, ideology tends to present it­ course designed to influence the attitudes, self as political philosophy; that is, as ar­ beliefs and/or actions of real people in real guments in support of a more or less situations. coherent view of the political world. More­ Rhetorical criticism's subject matter over, ideology is self-referencing; it draws ranges across a spectrum of discursive attention to its arguments as such. Its plau­ forms: from inaugural addresses to com­ sibility rests in part on audiences recogniz­ mercial advertisements; from political ing that argumentation (as opposed to 16 Michael Weiler authoritative assertion) is what it is about. process aimed at audiences capable of dis­ This means, I will suggest, that argument, tinguishing reason-giving from bald asser­ though not the sole rhetorical form in tion and plausible from implausible which ideology does its work, is claims. indispensable to producing its rhetorical Ideological arguments, like all argu­ effects. Accordingly, in my analysis of ments in the public sphere, are founded on ideology, I will be emphasizing what I the common opinions of audiences. These term "ideological arguments." opinions are conditioned by particular his­ It is important to note here that I am torical circumstances, and may be partially talking of the presentation of arguments to or (in rare cases) wholly false, but, as the audiences, not the technical properties of substance of arguments, the process by the arguments themselves. In other words, which they are brought to bear on political­ ideological arguments need not conform to ly significant questions is as rational as any particular standards of philosophical that employed in other any context.4 coherence or logical consistency; it is suf­ My analysis of ideology as rhetoric ficient merely that audiences accept them will be descriptive, primarily. It would be as "coherent" and "logical." This is not to wrong, however, to ignore the evaluative say that there is no correspondence be­ dimension of the rhetorical criticism of tween the formal properties of arguments ideology. Ideology, inherently, is a distor­ and audience perceptions of those proper­ tion of social truth, and not just any kind of ties. Rather, it is to acknowledge that one distortion. For ideology's function is to of ideology's crucial functions is to ob­ help make possible the domination in soci­ scure or deny actual contradictions. This ety of one group over others.s Ideology can be accomplished covertly through aims at securing the consent of the gov­ strategies of diversion, or overtly through erned. It is both alternative and comple­ plausible rationalization. In either, case, ment to coercion: alternative, in that however, argumentation is crucial to persuasion is different from and clearly successful persuasion. preferable to physical force; complement, I view "arguments" as claim statements in that the right combination of persuasion embodying, in Perelman and Olbrechts­ and physical force works more effectively Tyteca's words, "discursive technique[s] than either alone to produce political allowing us to induce or to increase the domination.6 mind's adherence to the theses presented To note these characteristics of ideolo­ for its assent. "3 Ideological arguments are gy is not necessarily to condemn it. Ideolo­ statements of this sort employed to support gy is essential to the existence of mass the legitimacy of a particular political societies; we cannot do without it. Politics system, to justify a particular configuration presupposes the need for legitimation. of power relations in society. Even the most coercive political systems This definition is not as expansive as it require for their survival some degree of may seem. It does not mean that any and popular consent. "Ideology's role," in Paul every declarative sentence is an argument. Ricoeur's words, "is to make possible an Insofar as ideology presents itself as politi­ autonomous politics by providing the cal philosophy, it must at least be plausible needed authoritative concepts that make it as such; it must advance theses, and offer meaningful. "7 Insofar as ideology is indis­ reasons for them. Accordingly, the discur­ pensible, the moral question becomes not sive techniques used in ideological argu­ whether it is present but what kind of mentation are not appeals to irrationality political system it supports, and by exten­ and arbitrariness, but rather are at the core sion, what alternative systems it helps to of an eminently reasonable inventional preclude. Ideology, Rhetoric and Argument 17 In this essay, I will confine myself to a discussion and debate? What if institutions discussion of ideology's nature, functions such as schools serve ideological functions and forms from a rhetorical critic's per­ as much through disiplinary rules and spective. To explicate this perspective, I regular procedures as through didactic will address three questions: 1) What is pronouncements? ideology?; 2) What does it do?; and 3) These possibilities among others re­ How does it do it? My objective is not to flect contemporary debates about the na­ press for a "rhetorical theory" of ideology ture, functions and forms of ideology. My as such, but rather to ask: What can we purpose is not to reject them in favor of a learn about ideology when we treat it as a more traditional approach. Rather, I am kind of rhetoric and apply to it the methods suggesting that insofar as one's goal is to and analytical categories typical of rhetori­ investigate how rhetorical criticism can in­ cal criticism? In broad terms, then, I am form ideological criticism, ideology as po­ treating the question: How do the resourc­ litical argument is the most fruitful es of rhetoric help ideology to do its job, to perspective. undergird a particular set of power rela­ The history of ideology as a concept tions in society, to secure the consent of dates from post-Revolutionary France. In the citizenry to be ruled by a subgroup of 1795, a group of liberal intellectuals led by itself? Destutt de Tracy took as their self-appointed task the creation of a new "science of ideas." These liberals, representing as they I. What Is Ideology? did the politics of free thought and expres­ sion, and embracing the Enlightenment This question can be answered in many faith in human rationality, believed that different ways. Joan Robinson once re­ their "ideology" could discover the stand­ marked that ideology is like an elephant, ards by which politically significant claims difficult to describe, but you know one could be judged. The point was to identify when you see one.8 The variety and com­ those "ideals" on which the good society plexity of contemporary theories of ideolo­ ought to be based. The old sources of au­ gy, however, suggest that her assessment is thority, whether religious or royal, were re­ only half-right. Not only, apparently, does jected. A new logic of politics was to description present great difficulties, but replace them.9 instinctive identification as well. Significantly, this was not a logic in It is not clear, for example, that it search of absolutes, but one grounded in makes sense to talk of "an ideology" or rational/empiricist assumptions.