In this essay, Michel Foucault's notion of the discursive formation is used as a starting point for formulation of a middle‐level theory that explains the process by which rhetoric is epistemic. Five theoretical units derived from Foucault's work‐discursive practices, rules, roles, power, and knowledge‐are discussed, along with the relationships among them. Foucault's theory then is illustrated in an analysis of Disneyland, a system of discursive acts that result in clearly specified knowledge or truth of a particular kind. Finally, the contributions Foucault's theory makes to the debate on rhetoric as epistemic are discussed.
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Foss et al. (1987) studied this question.