Title

Understanding Genre through the Lens of Advocacy: The Rhetorical Work of the Victim Impact Statement

Author Info

Amy D. Propen, York College of PennsylvaniaFollow
Mary Lay Schuster, University of Minnesota

Recommended Citation

Postprint version. Published in Written Communication, Volume 27, Issue 1, January 1, 2010, pages 3-35.

NOTE: At the time of publication, the author Amy D. Propen was not yet affiliated with Cal Poly.

The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088309351479.

Abstract

Through interviews with judges and victim advocates, courtroom observations, and rhetorical analyses of victims’ reactions to proposed sentences, the authors examine the features that judges and advocates think make victims’ arguments persuasive. The authors conclude that this genre, recently imposed upon the court, functions as a mediating device through which advocates push for collective change, particularly for judicial acceptance of personal and emotional appeals. This study understands genres as responsive to changes within the activity systems in which they work and extends knowledge about genres that function as advocacy tools within internal institutional systems.

Disciplines

English Language and Literature

Copyright

2010 Sage Publications.