ABSTRACT A CRITICAL-DRAMATISTIC STUDY OF RHETORIC: ANALYZING IDEOLOGICAL REPRESENTATIONS OF CHINA IN THE REPORTING OF THE KUNMING ATTACK by Hua Zhu This thesis argues for a new methodology, namely, critical-dramatistic analysis, for studying the rhetorical construction of reality in news reports and the politics and ideological forces that motivate and legitimatize such discursive representation of reality. Mainly synthesized from pentadic analysis and social-oriented critical discourse analysis, this methodology proposes a hybrid analytical framework that explains textual features of news reports in terms of the historical and sociocultural exigencies. To verify the applicability of this methodology, I employ a critical-dramatistic analysis to critique the ideological representations of China in three news reports on the Kunming Attack. My analysis of the reporting of the Kunming Attack also provides fresh data to understand the interpretive frames of different discourse communities. Implications upon discourse analysis of reality construction in news reports and upon cross-cultural communication are suggested, followed by a discussion about the limitations of the current study and the possible directions for future studies. A CRITICAL-DRAMATISTIC STUDY OF RHETORIC: ANALYZING IDEOLOGICAL REPRESENTATIONS OF CHINA IN THE REPORTING OF THE KUNMING ATTACK A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Miami University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of English by Hua Zhu Miami University Oxford, Ohio 2015 Chair: ____________________ LuMing Mao Reader: ___________________ Michele Simmons Reader: ___________________ Madelyn Detloff Table of Contents Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ iv Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: Toward a Critical-Dramatistic Analysis of News Reports ............................................ 4 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 4 Rhetoric of Discourses ............................................................................................. 4 Discourses as Selective and Institutionalized Representations of Reality ............... 5 Politics and Ideologies of Discourses ...................................................................... 7 Discourses as Interpretations of Motives ................................................................. 9 Research Questions and Objectives ....................................................................... 10 Developing a New Methodology ........................................................................... 10 Fundamental Perspectives of Critical-Dramatistic Analysis ................................. 11 The Trajectory of Critical-Dramatistic Analysis ................................................... 12 Procedures of Analysis .......................................................................................... 15 Summary ................................................................................................................ 16 Chapter 2: Critical Studies of Media Discourses as a Genre ........................................................ 17 Two Areas of Study in Media Discourse Studies .................................................. 17 Production and Circulation of News Reports ........................................................ 17 News Reports as a Genre ....................................................................................... 18 A Rudimentary Review of Critical Perspective ..................................................... 20 Textual Characteristics of Media Discourses ........................................................ 20 Production of Media Discourses in Contexts of Various Kinds ............................ 22 Sociocultural and Ideological Perspective ............................................................. 22 Sociocognitive Perspective .................................................................................... 24 Intertextual Perspective .......................................................................................... 25 Summary ................................................................................................................ 26 Chapter 3: Ideological Meaning-Makings in News Reports on the Kunming Attack .................. 27 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 27 Data Collection ...................................................................................................... 27 Data Selection ........................................................................................................ 28 A Critical-Dramatistic Analysis of Three News Reports ...................................... 28 Act-Agent Ratio ..................................................................................................... 29 Scene-Act Ratio in Xinhua News .......................................................................... 33 Scene-Act Ratio in the Post and the BBC .............................................................. 36 Purpose-Act Ratio in Xinhua ................................................................................. 38 Scene-Purpose Ratio in the Post and the BBC ....................................................... 38 ii Agency ................................................................................................................... 39 Dominant Terms in the Three News Reports ........................................................ 39 Political and Ideological Underpinnings ................................................................ 41 Xinhua: Ideology of Nationalism ........................................................................... 41 The Post and the BBC: Ideology of Freedom, Equality and Democracy .............. 44 Summary ................................................................................................................ 45 Chapter 4: Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 46 Works Cited .................................................................................................................................. 49 Appendix ....................................................................................................................................... 51 iii Acknowledgements My gratitude first and foremost goes to my thesis committee, LuMing Mao, Michele Simmons and Madelyn Detloff. Without their rigorous supervision, it would have been impossible for me to finish this project. Ever since our first meeting back to 2012 at Sun Yat-sen University, Professor Mao has been encouraging and guiding me to explore the field of rhetoric and composition, and more importantly, to open up myself to many possibilities in life. As the director of my thesis, he introduces me to academia in the United States and expands my perspective to see out of a cultural context that is familiar to me. Starting from our summer independent study, Professor Mao has offered his many insights on this research, stimulated and complicated my ideas, and walked me through the process of writing this thesis. His intellectual works in particular and his way of living in general always motivate me to grow into a better teacher, writer, scholar and person. I am also deeply indebted to Michele Simmons. With Michele’s methodology class and the many great conversations we have had during her office hour, I can gradually hear many dialogues in our field, and inquire into, though stumbling a little bit, many scholarly areas that were used to be unknown to me. It was from my seminar paper for Michele that I began considering a new methodology for studying reality representation in news reports, a pilot study which I base this thesis project upon. I owe much to Madelyn Detloff, with whom I had my first graduate seminar at Miami. Madelyn’s understanding and patience relieved my anxieties of studying in a new institute. Her enthusiasm for writing keeps me excited about both this project and my study here, and inspires me to continue making efforts to move forward. I am so fortunate to become part of the community of the English Department. Whenever I feel uncertain or apprehensive, my friends and colleagues are here cheering me up and calming me down till I can hear my own voice. Laura Tabor, especially, always accompanies me even when I went to those dark places. The many breakfasts, evening tea, and hours of reading and writing together with Laura made me laugh and kept me sane. Most of all, I am grateful to have my parents standing by my side. With them, I have the strength to navigate through the graduate school and a new life in another country. Their support, trust and confidence continually remind me where I come from, and lead me to new journeys. iv Introduction On March 1st, 2014, a group of knife-wielding attackers rampaged through the Kunming Railway Station, hacking citizens at random. At least twenty-eight ordinary citizens were stabbed to death and more than a hundred were injured. The attackers were either shot dead at the scene or were captured by the police. The Chinese government later identified