Abstract:

This presentation will examine the place of rhetorical theory in graphic design education and practice
from the perspective of assignments involving a level of authorship on the part of the designer. The
recent interest in the notion of authorship in graphic design invites a look into the role rhetoric can play
in the process of generating and organizing content. From this perspective, the act of designing is
defined as the search and development of word-and-image arguments meant to facilitate some type of
action. This definition acknowledges the existence of visual/verbal genres that help to constitute a
framework for the existing possibilities of action.
Keywords: rhetoric, discourse, visual/verbal, education