Rethinking Post-Communist Rhetoric

Perspectives on Rhetoric, Writing, and Professional Communication in Post-Soviet Spaces

Contributions by Nikolai Balykov, Elena Bespalova, Kara M. Bollinger, Yevgen Borodkin, Taras Danko, Olena Goroshko, Steffen Guenzel, Alla V. Kourova, Natalia Matveeva, Doan Modianos, Tatjana Schell, Brooke Ricker Schreiber, Kirk St. Amant, Pavel Zemliansky Edited by Pavel Zemliansky, Kirk St. Amant

Not available to order

Publication date:

08 April 2016

Length of book:

260 pages

Publisher

Lexington Books

ISBN-13: 9781498523387

This collection examines the forces and factors affecting rhetoric, writing, and communication expectations in the nations of the former Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc. The entries in this collection focus on four interconnected topics or contexts influencing rhetorical expectations and writing practices in these countries. The four contexts are (1) the dynamics of the educational settings in which students learn about the relationships between rhetoric and writing; (2) the professional environments in which students will apply their knowledge of rhetoric and writing upon completing their formal studies; (3) the greater global context that affects the teaching of rhetoric and writing as connected to educational institutions becoming part of a larger and more integrated global community; and (4) the factors and perceptions that affect how students apply and/or expand their foundations in rhetoric and writing to communicate effectively across different forms of media.

By approaching ideas of rhetoric, writing, and communication from the perspective of these four areas, this collection provides readers with a broad foundation for understanding the various overarching and interlocking contexts that affect perceptions of and practices involving communication practices and expectations in the former Eastern Bloc. Additionally, this approach provides researchers, teachers, and students with ideas and approaches that can be used to more effectively engage both with this topic area and with individuals from these nations.

Part I: Institutional Contexts
Chapter 1: A Survey of Academic and Professional Writing Instruction in Higher Education in Russia and Ukraine, Pavel Zemliansky and Olena Goroshko
Chapter 2: Introducing Western Writing Theory and Pedagogy to Russian Students: The
Writing and Communication Center at the New Economic School, Kara M. Bollinger
Chapter 3: Technical and Communication in Russia, Tatjana Schell

Part II: Workplace Contexts
Chapter 4: Russian Education in the Twenty-First Century: Establishing Links with the Global
Community, Alla V. Kourova
Chapter 5: Rhetoric in Technical Communication: Europe and the United States, Yevgen Borodkin
Chapter 6: Visible and Invisible Boundaries: Documentation Requirements for Opening a Foreign Representative Office in Russia and in the United States, Natalia Matveeva and Elena Bespalova

Part III: Geopolitical Contexts
Chapter 7: Mapping Professional and Technical Communication in German Higher Education in the Neue Länder since 1989, Steffen Guenzel
Chapter 8: Macro Acceptance, Micro Resistance? Perspectives from Serbian Writing
Teachers on the Bologna Process, Brooke Ricker Schreiber

Part IV: Multimedia Contexts
Chapter 9: Creating a Multinational Collaborative Online Community in High-Tech Marketing Domain in Ukraine, Taras Danko
Chapter 10: Media Usage Pattern and Trust in Media among Young People in a Large
Russian City, Nikolai Balykov and Doan Modianos

This book provides a unique international perspective on academic writing and the pedagogy and practice of business, technical, and professional communication over the past two decades in Eastern European and former Soviet countries. The breadth of its scope, the rich variety of studies and the analyses, and the depth of cultural and rhetorical insights make this collection a remarkable scholarly achievement that will greatly benefit scholars, teachers, and practitioners for years to come.