"Guilt is Burke's catchall term for tension, anxiety, embarrassment, shame, disgust, and other noxious feelings intrinsic to the human condition" (Griffin 292). According to Burke, there are two ways to redemption from the guilt, mortification and victimage.
Mortification is the confession of guilt and request for forgiveness. Victimage on the other hand is placing the blame, or scapegoating, on someone else for everything that is going wrong (Griffin 293).
The video above shows clips of former President Bush addressing the current economic situation along with our need/demand of energy. While Bush does not hold congress responsible for all of our nation's problems, he does blame it for our most current and prominent issues. Having watched the video, I can see that Bush's choice of redemption was through victimage.
Not once in his speech does Bush acknowledge any fault or wrong doing on his part, and maintains that he has made multiple attempts to right the wrongs of our country. It is evident that guilt(Burke's definition) was present in his speech through the tone and use of words. This reluctance to confess his guilt and take responsibility as the nation's leader (at the time), tells me that mortification is not a possibility here.
Burke believed that getting rid of guilt is the basic plot of the human drama and that rhetoric is searching for a perfect scapegoat at its root (Griffin 293). If that is the case, is Bush or anyone else for that matter, justified at all for seeking redemption through victimage? Or is this pattern throughout history enabling or encouraging people to follow others in placing blame rather than taking responsibility?
One unflattering name that came out of the bush administration was the "do nothing congress" and the former president puts the nail in the coffin for that name here in his dramatic portrayal of victimage. He is basically telling the american people, hey I'm trying to get things done, but this congress just won't let me. I don't know which came first, this speech, or the name "do nothing congress" but in a way Bush is using identification, as if to say, i'm just like you folks, getting screwed over by the government again, He is really aligning himself with the common man, and putting himself outside of government, the very body he is the head of. With regards to Burke's dramatic pentad, the agent in this case is the congress. The purpose are the claims Bush makes to what he is trying to get done. Bush is a prime example of what Burke considered the prime motivation of all speeches, and that is to clear ones self of some kind of guilt. I tend to look at political figures from a dramatic perspective especially comparable to shakespearean characters, such as Lear, or Richard. Burke would agree there, because his claim is that life is not like a drama, but is a drama, and this clip shows the dramatic lengths the former president went to absolve himself of any blame.I think you bring up a good point here at the end Paul. I think in the age of constant tv coverage we have become so skeptical of our politicians even telling the truth, but Bush takes the cake, if you want to talk about lead by example look at the Karl Rove, scooter libby's, and Dick Cheney under him. Monkey see, monkey do. Maybe Obama's actual blunt honesty is hard to believe when we have known so much of the bad side of Dramatism for so long.
ReplyDeleteI had never seen this clip before and when I watched it for the first time I couldn't believe how much it struck home in connection Chapter 22: Dramatism. The eight years that former President Bush was in office he was the brunt of a lot of blame whether it was about the troops overseas, not responding to natural disasters in a timely manner, or the failing economy. But at least to know my knowledge this is the first time I've ever taken note that former President Bush put the blame on other times. Now I admit had this just been a straight clip of him speaking I wouldn't have thought it quite as a big deal as I did when it was directly pointed out to me by the KRON 4 news team but no matter how I realized it, the fact of the matter is someone realized it and is now making other people aware.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Paul that former President Bush felt the need to speak because he had overwhelming feelings of guilt which according to Burke, "all public speaking is to purge ourselves of an ever-present, all-inclusive sense of guilt. Former President Bush then found his redemption from guilt through victimage and we know of this because of all the blame he put on other people. Now while his speech concerned the nation's failing economy it is true that Bush never came out and said, "Congress is responsible for our nation's failing economy" he did out right blame them for a lot of small things that built together could effect the economy. KRON 4 reported that in actually blamed Congress for various things in his speech 21 times. For me that is getting a little ridiculous, redundant, and I wonder if former President Bush realizes he is also to blame so this is how is sub conscience is overcompensating.
I agree with Brian that Paul raised a very valid question at the end of his entry. The position of the President of the United States is the highest government position you can have this country. To get into that position you are elected by the entire country and your job is to lead the nation. It's a position of extraordinary amount of power and influence. Even though no one likes to blame themselves and it's the hardest thing to do to admit you're wrong, it does not bode well when the President of the United States can't even accept any blame and chooses to point fingers to other people. It does not set a good example for the people of this country or the citizens of the world.
Burke thought "persuasion as the communicator's attempt to get the audience to accept his or her view of reality as true." The five elements to do this are act, scene, agent, agency and purpose. George Bush tries to persuade the audience that the reason why the economy and other issues are are not being resolved is because of congress and not him. I will analyst this clip with the five elements of Burke's dramatisic pentad, I will start with act. Act asks the questions "what?" or "what will be done?" Bush states that energy prices, oil and nuclear power are some major issues and nothing is being done to solve these issues due to congress. The scene is America and the current economic situation. I am a slight confused about the difference between agency and agent in this clip. My guess is George Bush is the agent because he should be the person to answer the question "what?" or "what will be done?" but he does not answer either question in his speech. I believe congress is the agency because they are "the agent used to do the deed." Bush can not stimulate the economy because of congress. If anyone has anymore insight about agents and agency, it will be useful. The purpose of the speech is to tell citizens of America that he is trying to help our economic situation but the democratic run congress is blocking everything.
ReplyDeleteThis was a great example. Seeking redemption through victimage is not justified at all in this situation or any situation a President faces. For example, a coach of a sports team never should blame the players, he should blame himself. Also, in my opinion Bush was a terrible President this is definitely not a pattern of blaming others...hopefully.
From watching the video of Bush speaking, it is apparent that he, indeed, exemplifies the guilt-redemption cycle from Burke's teachings. Self blame, or mortification, as Burke describes it, is missing from the content of former President Bush's press conference. For this reason, the clip is an excellent example of what Burke would describe as victimage. Again and again Bush designates an external enemy as the source of problems for the American people. By repeatedly blaming congress, he attempts to lift blame off of his own shoulders and place it elsewhere in the eyes and minds of the American people. It seems as though Bush is trying to explain or justify actions for which he feels guilty. Just as it has been used throughout history, according to Burke, Bush uses rhetoric in this address to justify or redirect the blame. It is also interesting how many times Bush directly places blame on congress. He makes no attempt at being the least bit subtle with his accusations. This fact seems to represent the fact that he could be desperate for the approval of the people and has to repeatedly place blame and accuse to justify his actions.
ReplyDeleteBy no means do I defend the former President on many things,but he cant send mixed messages and take blame in speeches and those types of live press confrences and addresses to the nation. He is justifying what he's doing because he thinks the American people need a strong leader who knows everything, is sure of himself, and doesnt send messages to the country that would be contray to his adminstrations view. He was never a flip flooper he stated what he thought and stuck with it he express mortification towards terrorist and soldiers lost in battle, but not towards his administraions view of toruture and polices. When clearly the country and other leaders knew they were wrong.
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