Blair & Cooper (1987), "The Humanist Turn in Foucault’s Rhetoric of Inquiry"

Blair and Cooper (1987) address Fisher's critique of Foucault. Fisher reads Foucault's positions on the structures of discourse as anti-humanist, and therefore argues that Foucault's theories are inherently flawed. Blair and Cooper (1987) defend Foucault, noting that Foucault's critiques of humanism were aimed at producing a more humanist result. They note that Foucault's work imagines human agency in discourse and attempts to create an environment with even more human rhetorical freedom.

1. Foucault is an important contributor to contemporary rhetoric.

Blair and Cooper (1987) point out that contemporary rhetoric sees humans as entrenched in discourses as opposed to old perspectives which saw rhetoric simply as a tool of persuasion. Foucault imagined human subjects to be active within their discursive environment. Foucault is therefore an important contributor to contemporary rhetoric.

2. Foucault's work reframes rhetoric in a manner consistent with humanist goals.

Blair and Cooper (1987) argue that rhetorical criticism must critique social alternatives that are offered in rhetoric. They see Foucault's methodological arguments as driving rhetorical theory toward a more proactive position.