The People's Voice: The Orator in American Society by Barnet Baskerville (review)

Book Reviews Barnet Baskerville. The People's Voice: The Orator in American Society. Lexington: University of Kentucky Press, 1979. 259p. In a single volume, the author considers the role of oral discourse in the American experience from "The Revolutionary Period" of "The Orator as Hero" to "The Contemporary Scene" of "The Decline of Eloquence." Baskerville's purpose is "to examine the connections, the reciprocal relationships, between the emphases, enthusiasms, preoccupations of a given age and the nature of speaking heard from the public platform." His "principal concern is not with the appraisal of individual orators," but with the collective impact of the orators and their artistry, "and with audiences and eras as determinants of the orator's role." Such an ambitious undertaking would strain the competence of most contemporary rhetorical critics. Although starkly different in focus and content, the last panoramic approach to American oratory was Oliver's History of Public Speaking in America (1965). Baskerville demonstrates how persuasion — sometimes sublime, sometimes seedy — has been a perpetual force in American society. Several attributes of the study deserve recognition. First, some 200 years of speaking is organized into seven chapters and an epilogue. While no one period can be treated exhaustively, the text reflects a structural balance often lacking in expansive undertakings. Second, the notes at the end of the book are useful supplements that do not distract the reader from the text, yet supply a generous number of primary materials. Third, the author develops his facts in a lively writing style that gives the reader a feel for the temper and tone of each period without sacrificing objectivity. Overall, the manuscript appears in an attractive and readable format, although infrequent lapses in the publisher's proofreading efficiency is distractive. Finally, and perhaps most valuable from a rhetorical perspective, the author neither shuns nor abuses his role as critic. His conclusions are sound, well reasoned, easy to grasp, free from the evaluative mystique and jargon that so often pervades judgmental treatises. In their landmark text, Speech Criticism (1948), Thonssen and Baird question whether "the historian and critic can be united in the same person." Nevertheless, Baskerville succeeds admirably in producingan invaluablesource for students of American history as well as for critics of American rhetoric. The People's Voice is not for the uninitiated. It refreshingly assumes the reader 's basic familiarity with chronology and orators, thus it can be an important text for upper division/graduate courses. This book deserves a prominent place in the library of everyone interested in the history, theory, criticism, and broadcasting of public discourse. G. JACK GRAVLEE, Colorado State University Juan D. Bruce-Novoa. Chicano Authors: Inquiry by Interview. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1980. 292p. In his preface, Bruce-Novoa states that the primary purpose of Chicano Authors: Inquiry by Interview is "to be nothing more than a useful tool for the student and an introduction to Chicano writers for the general public." The book, however, is much more than the modest description offered by its author. It is a solid piece ofscholarly research and an example ofacritical approach that is much needed in the evaluation of Chicano literature. Chicano Authors: Inquiry by Interview is a collection of fourteen provocative interviews with such leading authors as José Antonio Villarreal, Rolando Hinojosa, ...