Narratives, Rhetorical Genres, and Environmental Conflict: Responses to Schwarze's “Environmental Melodrama”

Bsumek, Peter K.; Walker, Gregg B.; Kinsella, William J.; Check, Terence; Peterson, Tarla Rai; Schwarze, Steve

doi:10.1080/17524030801980242

Cited by 14 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Though comedy unifies communities and promotes possibilities, it may do so by appealing to hegemonic values rather than, for instance, fundamentally challenging the neo-liberal logic which justifies exploitation of the earth (Kinsella, 2008). Comic fluidity must not be taken as an excuse to justify doing nothing about global warming, or to maintain the status quo.…”

Section: Conclusion: Understanding and Reframing Apocalyptic Despairmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Perhaps the polarizing rhetoric of melodrama may shift the ground of the climate change debate away from economic costs and benefits, to the moral stakes of decimating the earth, as Peterson suggests (Kinsella, 2008). Drawing clear distinctions between heroes and villains could motivate identifications to mitigate emissions.…”

Section: Conclusion: Understanding and Reframing Apocalyptic Despairmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Participants in a recent Environmental Communication forum speak to this question, in light of Schwarze's discussion of melodrama (Kinsella, 2008). As Schwarze (2006) argues, the polarizing structure of melodrama may inspire action: ''Promoting division and drawing sharp moral distinctions can be a fitting response to situations in which identification and consensus have obscured recognition of damaging material conditions and social injustices'' (p. 242).…”

Section: Conclusion: Understanding and Reframing Apocalyptic Despairmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Revealing and Reframing Apocalyptic Tragedy in Global Warming Discourse

Foust¹,

Murphy

2009

Environmental Communication

125

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Section: Conclusion: Understanding and Reframing Apocalyptic Despairmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Conclusion: Understanding and Reframing Apocalyptic Despairmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Conclusion: Understanding and Reframing Apocalyptic Despairmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Revealing and Reframing Apocalyptic Tragedy in Global Warming Discourse

Foust¹,

Murphy

2009

Environmental Communication

125

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“…Despite the criticism of melodrama as irrational, it represents how people understand and come to terms with complex and daunting issues such as climate change. 2 In other words, people tend to make sense of complex issues by categorizing the good and the evil and identifying heroes and villains. Instead of ignoring or repudiating melodrama, proponents of climate change mitigation technology and policy have much to gain by adapting a melodramatic frame for their purposes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While some scholars have criticized melodrama for its polarizing perspective, [4][5][6] it remains a dominant way for people to understand and come to terms with complex and daunting issues. 2 During the 1980s, many scientists and policymakers subscribed to a view of science communication that assumed members of the lay public suff ered from a defi cit of information, as well as a defi cit in the way that they viewed the world. According to the defi cit model, good science communication simply needed to fi ll the void with correct information, and with training in how to view the world more rationally.…”

Section: Melodramamentioning

confidence: 99%

Southwestern United States Carbon Sequestration Training Center

Lee¹,

Campbell²,

McPherson³

et al. 2012

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The Southwest CO 2 Training Center was initiated in November 2009 in response to the need to develop a generation of workers with expertise in carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS). Three universities ran the Training Center cooperatively: New Mexico Tech, the University of Utah and Texas A&M University. The overall approach of the Training Center was to conduct education and outreach at a wide range of educational levels, including K-12 students and teachers, undergraduate and graduate students, professionals, and the general Overall we offered 60 CEU credits and 2,598 hours of professional training. A business plan was developed to continue the Training Center's CCUS education into the future. This involves a collaborative agreement with Schlumberger Carbon Services using the expertise and on-line materials developed by the Training Center for a commercial professional development website.

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The Adventures of Carbon Bond: Using a melodramatic game to explain CCS as a mitigation strategy for climate change

et al. 2012

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Policy options for mitigating climate change have been severely limited in the USA by the clash of competing ideologies. People who oppose policies to mitigate climate change have successfully framed climate change as existing outside the realm of fact and empirical reality. Instead, opponents frame the issue as a melodramatic struggle between good and evil. While scientists and engineers tend to be uncomfortable with melodramatic framing, we argue that melodrama resonates with people. Constructing a different melodramatic frame can tap into people's tendency to conceptualize issues in terms of heroes and villains and assist in creating a shift in the political controversy from debating the factuality of climate change to a focus on mitigation. We developed an educational video game that uses this frame to teach students about climate change and carbon capture, and sequestration, to create an understanding of CO2 as the villain and humans as heroes through participation in mitigation strategies. The hero of this melodrama is aided by science and technology to mitigate anthropogenic climate change. We analyze The Adventures of Carbon Bond© as a medium for educating students about climate change and shifting framing. We begin with a discussion of melodrama and the rhetorical nature of video games. Then, through statistical analysis of surveys completed by students who played the game, we demonstrate that students experienced a knowledge increase as a result of game play. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings for productively reframing climate change towards an emphasis on technological mitigation. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

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Narratives, Rhetorical Genres, and Environmental Conflict: Responses to Schwarze's “Environmental Melodrama”

Cited by 14 publications

References 24 publications

Revealing and Reframing Apocalyptic Tragedy in Global Warming Discourse

Revealing and Reframing Apocalyptic Tragedy in Global Warming Discourse

Southwestern United States Carbon Sequestration Training Center

The Adventures of Carbon Bond: Using a melodramatic game to explain CCS as a mitigation strategy for climate change

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