Invention in Rhetoric and Composition

Heuristics – creative discovery

“Of all the five canons – or major parts - of classical rhetoric,

invention is the only one that directly addresses

the content of communication as well as the process of creation,

thus dealing with one of the most visible parts

of published rhetorical performance, the content,

and one of the most often invisible – the process

by which a writer produced that content” (Lauer, 2004, p. 1,2)

Invention

-- Mary Shelley

Recursive

Heuristics

Creative Discove

ry

Learn by

Doing

Linear

Thesis Stateme

nt

Five Points

Conclusion

Procedure vs Process

Heuristic

ProcessPreparation: All that you are up

to this point

Incubation: Stewing in your

own juices

Illumination: Eureka

Moment!

Verification: Revise or Abandon

Preparation: Your context, your life experiences & knowledge

Incubation: your thought processes work quietly in the background, invention is intentional

Illumination: cognitive conflict, meaning making, disparate ideas come together – Eureka!

Verification: Edit, Revise, Abandon

I

Brainstorming, Freewrite, Mapping

• Write personal explorations & reflections on ideas

• Tagemic matrix & Pentab

• Invent & organize visually to explore relationships

• Record ideas without revising or proofreading

Brainstorm &

Freewrite

Map & Cluster

Keep a Journal

Ask Critical

Questions

FreewritingLook out the

window Explore an

idea

Ready? Set? Write! No stopping

No editing Same time of day

Pre-determined time period

Times up!Note key

words and phrases

Look for themes &

relationships