Establishing Exigence

Exigence is a rhetorical concept that can help writers and readers think about why texts exist. You can use the concept to analyze what others’ texts are responding to and to more effectively identify the reasons why you might produce your own. Understanding exigence can lead to a better sense of audience and purpose, as well: When you know why a text exists, you will often have a clearer sense of to whom it speaks and what it seeks to do.

The rhetorical concept of exigence, sometimes called exigency, is attributed to rhetorical scholar Lloyd Bitzer. In his essay, “The Rhetorical Situation,” he identifies exigence as an important part of any rhetorical situation. Bitzer writes, exigence is “an imperfection marked by urgency . . . a thing which is other than it should be.” It is the thing, the situation, the problem, the imperfection, that moves writers to respond through language and rhetoric. Bitzer claims there can be numerous exigencies necessitating response in any situation but there is always a controlling exigency—one that is stronger than the others (6–8).

Image source: Write Now by Daniel Anderson pg 19

In the example above, the exigence of the researcher, Sara Mead, was to discuss the misconceptions about how boys and girls in school are held to different educational standards and thus perform differently in the school environment. Among others, the image above presents responses to the Mead report.

• Judith Warner

  • How does the authors' tone impact your impression of the article?

  • Many news articles don't cite evidence directly (with hyperlinks), how would this omission impact your understanding of the argument being presented?

  • Consider the solution offered in the article, is there research that can be conducted to support the solution? What else needs to be known?

• Kathleen Parker

  • How does the authors' tone impact your impression of the article?

  • Many news articles don't cite evidence directly (with hyperlinks), how would this omission impact your understanding of the argument being presented?

  • What do you think about the claim the author makes? How does it relate to the boy crisis described in the report?

• Nahal Toosi (story on page 14)

  • What connections can be discovered between this article and the "boy crisis" conversation?

  • Based on the information presented, how is learning driven?

  • How has this story informed or changed your understanding of the "boy crisis"?

The Warner and Parker articles specifically mention the Mead report, but Toosi has taken a different route to identify a potential problem. Warner and Parker come to different conclusions about the significance of the initial report. How can these differences be explained? Of the three articles, which do you find more compelling and why?

✅Even though the initial report and responding articles were written in 2006, you can still Google the term, "boy crisis" and see that the conversation continues.