A rhetorical rationale for interdisciplinary graduate study in communication

Communication is an inherently interdisciplinary subject matter because it occurs as a consequence of biophysical, conceptual, and social processes, and because its uses and effects are drawn out differently in the various contexts of its employment. Graduate education in speech communication may explore these senses of interdisciplinarity without depending upon a fixed theoretical framework for description and explanation by using a system of rhetorical topics designed to stimulate and guide inquiry into alternative methods of invention and judgment. The topical system recommended here suggests lines of inquiry that may be pursued in appropriately designed classroom discussions, bibliographical assignments, and field research projects.