Corpus-Paul

["David C. Hindley" <dhindley AT compuserve.com>]

Dale Walker responded:

>>Paul Zanker's The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus is a
wonderful monograph on propaganda. It focuses on the implementation of
imperial power, rather than its overthrow, but it does address the
other part of your question, viz., the advancement of an agenda.<<

That is quite OK! I feel propaganda has to be viewed from all angles.

>>From the perspective of social psychology here are two interesting
books: Robert Cialdini, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion [and]
Anthony Pratkanis, Age of Propaganda: The Everyday Use and Abuse of
Persuasaion These two books focus on the present, but provide helpful
ways to think about how people in the past might have accomplished
their ends. Let me put that another way. These books provide a way of
thinking about rhetoric that will help you think about how propaganda
works.<<

I must admit that I have recently (in the last two years or so)
acquired a greater appreciation for rhetoric than I once had, both
ancient and "universal." It was not so much that I formerly had a
negative appreciation for it, but rather a generally uninformed one.
It will certainly not hurt to increase my understanding of what
fundamental processes make propaganda persuasive.

>>All three are also fun to read.<<

Propaganda can definitely be funny, especially when the agenda is
obvious but the propagator seems completely unaware of it.

Thanks for the references!

Respectfully,

Dave Hindley
Cleveland, Ohio, USA