A War of Words: Chicano Protest in the 1960s and 1970s

(Hardback)

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The authors analyze the rhetorical discourse characteristic of the Chicano protest movement of the sixties and seventies, focusing on four prominent activists, Cesar Chavez, Rodolfo Corky Gonzalez, Jose Angel Gutierrez, and Reies Lopez Tijerina. How these militant spokesmen employed their extensive skill with words is closely examined and analyzed. In the process, much about the nature, function, and meaning of the Chicano protest movement becomes clear. Similarities and differences in their rhetorical styles are discussed, as are their different backgrounds, personalities, goals, audiences, and the issues they addressed. Included is an analysis of the themes, appeals, and symbols they popularized in ther personal vision of what America ought to be for Chicanos. The volume also contains an essay by Jose Angel Gutierrez, an essay on the counter-rhetoric and ideology of other Mexican-American leaders of the time, and a bibliographic essay.

Reviews

A War of Words fills a void in contemporary rhetorical scholarship. Hammerback, Jensen and Gutierrez have done an important service to the discipline.-Rhetoric Society Quarterly
"A War of Words fills a void in contemporary rhetorical scholarship. Hammerback, Jensen and Gutierrez have done an important service to the discipline."-Rhetoric Society Quarterly

Author Bio

RICHARD J. JENSEN is Professor of Communication, University of New Mexico. He co-authored Rhetorical Perspectives on Communication and Mass Media, co-edited In Search of Justice and A War of Words: Chicano Protest in the 1960s and 1970s (Greenwood Press, 1985) and edited Great Speeches in American History. He has contributed numerous book chapters and more than 24 journal articles on speech-related topics.