The Rhetorical Situation and its Constituents

Keith Grant-Davie gives direct and detailed explanations for the terms rhetorical situation and its constituents. He describes a rhetorical situation simply as “the content in which speakers or writers create rhetorical discourse.” The book also defines it as communication (discourse) that attempts to motivate others to do or change something, where the attempt at persuasion is the rhetoric and the context of it is the situation.

The constituents are separated into three groups based on their function in the aforementioned rhetorical situation. First there is the exigence, which Grant-Davie defines as “A need or problem that can be addressed through rhetorical discourse.”  There are rhetors: the people who create and produce the discourse. The “writers” as it were. Then we have the audience. Obviously, these are the people engaging in and influenced by the discourse. Grant-Davie dubs them the “mediators of change.” Finally, we have what he calls the “constraints”. These are the people or things involved in the situation that may impede attempts to “solve” the exigence. The book used an example of a chilly friend attempting to subtlety ask for the heat to be turned up. The subtlety was a constraint as the friend didn’t want to come off as pushy or rude, and in doing so she limited the potential effectiveness of her communication. A compound rhetorical situation is simply your run of the mill rhetorical situation that has several rhetors.

The rhetorical situation and constraint are very much the yin and yang of communication in any context. I think everyone would benefit from improving his or her knowledge of the two. Being aware of exactly what you want to say, as well as the constraints that really define your tone and “plan-of-attack” will ultimately make you a more effective writer and communicator.