About this project
A college writing seminar inspired by Jesuit tradition and contemporary scholarship
Welcome to “Perfecting Eloquence: Jesuit Pedagogy in the First-Year Writing Classroom.” This project offers the framework for a college writing class specifically designed to unite two far-reaching intellectual traditions: first, the Society of Jesus; and second, the contemporary academic discipline of Rhetoric and Composition. While these two traditions hold much in common, there is one particular theme that’s integral to both of them: the understanding and development of eloquence.
For Jesuits, attaining eloquentia perfecta (or, “perfect eloquence”), was a crucial step in their mission of serving God. To attain eloqeuntia perfecta meant far more than annunciating your words correctly or writing well-organized paragraphs; it meant speaking so well that your words would inspire others to take action toward the common good. A person’s whole being—their body, their mind, their moral character—played a part in their eloquence (or lack thereof), and thus, their studies needed to account for each of these elements.
In the field of Rhetoric and Composition, scholars are less focused on the why of eloquence, and more on the how. For instance, while Jesuit schools have always sought to promote eloquentia perfecta, their methods have remained largely stagnant for hundreds of years. Rhet-Comp scholars, on the other hand, constantly experiment with, assess, and revise the way writing should be taught, examining everything from the construction of assignments to the ideal interior decorations for a university’s Writing Center.
Therefore, this course attempts to provide some of the instruction necessary for its students to attain eloqeuntia perfecta, using the skills of writing and rhetoric they will develop in this class to advocate for the common good. But this course has also been inspired by decades of scholarship that explores how one can best prepare and inspire writers to communicate with the diversity of audiences and mediums in today’s world.
How to use this project
"Perfecting Eloquence" consists of:
- A syllabus for the course
- A sequence of four major assignments
- A metacognitive writing exercise
- A bibliography of texts relevant to both Jesuit Studies and Rhetoric and Composition.
To view these, use the buttons on the navigation menu at the top of this page. To download any of the course documents, click "Download PDFs," where you can preview and select each one individually.
When viewing the course documents on this website, you will see digital annotations over select words and phrases. These are notes for interested readers to explore the scholarship around a certain term, idea, or practice in either Jesuit Studies or Rhetoric and Composition. If you click the blue, underlined text, a bubble will appear with the entire text of the note. If you wish to view the note on a separate page, click the phrase "Go to note."
About the author
Michael P. Lyons is a graduate student in the field of Rhetoric and Composition and a teacher of college writing. He is currently finishing his M.A. in English at Boston College, with a certificate in Digital Humanities. This fall, he will begin his studies for a Ph.D. in Composition and Rhetoric at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
His work has been published in America Magazine, and is an Associate Editor for the forthcoming edition of The Best of Journals in Rhetoric and Composition.