the dramatic criticism pentad
The overall goal for a student using Kenneth Burke's Dramatic Pentad is to identify the dominate element or elements in an artifact in order to learn the rhetors motives . The elements are compared to one another in order to find which carries the most weight through out the artifact. The five categories used to sort the elements (further explained below) are Act, Agency, Agent, Scene and Purpose. These are also refereed to as the Who, What, Where, When and Why respectively. Also of note is that while Burke does say he had help from other sources he is given all the credit for the Pentadic Criticism.
About kenneth burke
Kenneth Burke, in full Kenneth Duva Burke (born May 5, 1897, Pittsburgh, Pa., U.S.—died Nov. 19, 1993, Andover, N.J.), American literary critic who is best known for his rhetorically based analyses of the nature of knowledge and for his views of literature as “symbolic action,” where language and human agency combine.
Burke attended universities briefly—Ohio State University (Columbus, 1916–17) and Columbia University (New York City, 1917–18)—but never took a degree. He wrote poems, a novel, and short stories and translated the works of many German writers into English. He was the music critic of The Dial (1927–29) and of The Nation (1934–36). He then turned to literary criticism, lecturing on this subject at the University of Chicago (1938; 1949–50), and he taught at Bennington College (Vermont) from 1943 through 1961.
Burke’s unorthodox critical thought is complex and subtle. He was concerned not to look only at the “intrinsic” elements of literature (the formal aspects of the literary text itself), and he called for a larger view that also included a work’s “extrinsic” elements—the relationship of the literary work to its full context (its audience, its author’s biography, its social, historical, and political background). Realizing that the critic should criticize criticism as well as literature, he became an early advocate for literary theory. Among his books are: Counter-Statement (1931; rev. ed., 1968); The Philosophy of Literary Form (1941; 3rd ed., 1974); Permanence and Change: An Anatomy of Purpose (1935; rev. ed., 1959); Attitudes Toward History, 2 vol. (1937; rev. ed., 1959); A Grammar of Motives (1945); A Rhetoric of Motives (1950); and Language as Symbolic Action (1966).
Burke attended universities briefly—Ohio State University (Columbus, 1916–17) and Columbia University (New York City, 1917–18)—but never took a degree. He wrote poems, a novel, and short stories and translated the works of many German writers into English. He was the music critic of The Dial (1927–29) and of The Nation (1934–36). He then turned to literary criticism, lecturing on this subject at the University of Chicago (1938; 1949–50), and he taught at Bennington College (Vermont) from 1943 through 1961.
Burke’s unorthodox critical thought is complex and subtle. He was concerned not to look only at the “intrinsic” elements of literature (the formal aspects of the literary text itself), and he called for a larger view that also included a work’s “extrinsic” elements—the relationship of the literary work to its full context (its audience, its author’s biography, its social, historical, and political background). Realizing that the critic should criticize criticism as well as literature, he became an early advocate for literary theory. Among his books are: Counter-Statement (1931; rev. ed., 1968); The Philosophy of Literary Form (1941; 3rd ed., 1974); Permanence and Change: An Anatomy of Purpose (1935; rev. ed., 1959); Attitudes Toward History, 2 vol. (1937; rev. ed., 1959); A Grammar of Motives (1945); A Rhetoric of Motives (1950); and Language as Symbolic Action (1966).
Example.
i see what you meanI See What You Mean (pictured left) sculpted by Lawrence Argent provides a good example for use of a Pentadic Criticism. One way break down the sculpture as follows,
Agent: Blue Bear Act: Looking into convention center Purpose: To see what is going on Agency: Curiosity and playfulness Scene: Convention center in Denver, Colorado Note: You may Discover more than one pentad. That is fine. just choose the one you think suites the artifact best. Once you have identified five elements you must compare them and decide which is the dominate element or elements. (no more than two) A comparison might go as such: Scene-act: no Scene-agent: unclear Scene-agency: no Scene purpose: yes In order to get a yes, no or unclear answer you must consider whether or not the first element determines the second. Does the scene determine the act? No. The Scene does however determine the purpose. |
Pros of the pentad
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Cons of the pentad
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sources
Burke's Pentad: Dramatism. (n.d.). Burke's Pentad: Dramatism. Retrieved April 13, 2014, from http://rhetorica.net/burke.htm
Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. (n.d.). Kenneth Burke (American critic). Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Retrieved April 13, 2014, from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/85395/Kenneth-Burke
Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. (n.d.). Kenneth Burke (American critic). Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Retrieved April 13, 2014, from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/85395/Kenneth-Burke