Grace Hancock Blog Post #4

Kenneth Burke's theory of identification and Krista Ratcliffe's theory of rhetorical listening have a single key factor in common: the concept of identification. Burke's theory of rhetoric and his theory of identification are one the same in that he defines rhetoric as a body of identifications. Burke theorizes that we humans can identify with each other through shared commonalities; that in speaking each others language, we become consubstantial. The idea of consubstantiality comes from the Christian notion of the Eucharist: bread and wine becoming the body and blood of Christ. Burke's concept of identification is also meant to imply division. 

Ratcliffe's article titled Rhetorical Listening: A Trope for Interpretive Invention and as a "Code of Conduct," takes Burke's theory of identification and applies it to real world situations. When discussing of the literary works of Deborah Tannen, Ratcliffe writes: "Tannen further argues that our culture socializes men and women to listen differently; men often listen by challenging speakers to a verbal duel to determine who knows more and who is quicker on their feet; women often listening by smiling, nodding, asking questions and providing encouraging verbal cues." (Page 200). Ratcliffe goes on to write: "Thus gendered, listening subordinates not only women to men but listening to speaking." (Page 200). 

In this article, Ratcliffe not only strives to lay out her theory of rhetorical listening, but she also attempts to address what she sees as biases in the field of rhetoric that have lead to the suppression of one group's voice under another's, as exemplified in the previous paragraph. 
When discussing thees various biases, Ratcliffe writes: "This question exposes a third cultural bias that may have influenced our field's neglect of listening- our culture's privileging of sight, our preference for interpretive tropes that proceed via the eye, what Martin Jay calls occularcentrism." (Page 2010.) I interpret this quote as meaning people often cannot see past their preconceived stereotypes of people. People too often judge others "by their book covers."