Ridicule, Technical Communication, and Nineteenth-Century Women Performing College Math

Authors

Andrew Fiss, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-2020

Department

Department of Humanities

Abstract

This article examines how nineteenth-century participants in technical and professional communication (TPC) used rhetorical techniques of ridicule to critique audiences’ assumptions and advocate for expanded educational opportunities. Encouraging laughter ostensibly about college mathematics, Vassar students drew on their knowledge of rhetoric and higher education to disrupt audience expectations regarding the gendered identities of mathematician and college student. Using a case study, this article broadly urges the development of the role of humor as a technique in TPC.

Publisher's Statement

© 2020 Association of Teachers of Technical Writing. Publisher’s version of record: https://doi.org/10.1080/10572252.2020.1803989

Publication Title

Technical Communication Quarterly

Recommended Citation

Fiss, A. (2020). Ridicule, Technical Communication, and Nineteenth-Century Women Performing College Math. Technical Communication Quarterly. http://doi.org/10.1080/10572252.2020.1803989
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p/2732