Ritual Communication

Eric W. Rothenbuhler is Professor of Communication at Texas A&M University.  He was previously Director of Graduate Media Studies at New School University (2001-04) and on the faculty of Communication Studies at the University of Iowa (1985-2001).  At Iowa he was an affiliated faculty member with American Studies and faculty advisor to the student radio station, KRUI, 89.7 FM, where he also had a weekly radio show on the history of rhythm and blues.  He earned his doctorate at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California in 1985 and the BA and MA from Ohio State University.  He has been a visiting faculty member at the University of Kansas (twice), Scholar in Residence at the Center for Advanced Study in Telecommunication at Ohio State University, and has participated in doctoral workshops and teaching seminars at the Universities of Dortmund, Ljubljana, and Oslo.

Ritual and ceremonial, as formal modes of conduct, are equally ubiquitous appearing in everything from modes of talk and rules of politeness to elaborate protocols for events of state. Ritual and rite, ceremonial and ceremony are symbolic social actions, modes of communication that implicate individuals in the social order, creating realities whilst expressing ideas and attitudes about them. This book combines bibliographic essay and theory construction to provide a unique perspective on ritual as a special and powerful form of communication.

Preface - Part One - Chapter 1: Descriptions and Definitional Strategy - Chapter 2: Definitions - Chapter 3: Five Inadequate Conceptions - Chapter 4: Four Only Partly Adequate Conceptions - Chapter 5: Some Special Problems in the Study of Ritual - Chapter 6: Some Communication Theory Applied to Ritual Problems - Part Two - Chapter 7: Five Contributions of the Ritual Concept to Communication Studies - Chapter 8: Mediated Communication in Ritual Form - Chapter 9: Ritual Functions of Mediated Culture - Chapter 10: Political, Rhetorical, and Civic Rituals - Chapter 11: Ritual Communication Forms in Everyday Secular Life - Chapter 12: Ritual Conceptions of Culture and Communication - Chapter 13: Conclusion