In the journal article “Conversion of America’s Consciousness: The Rhetoric of The Exorcist”, Thomas S. Frentz and Thomas B. Farrell make an argument in which they claim that the movie The Exorcist had a major social change in American society. They believe it made people shift their conscience from favoring positivism and turn to more transcendent views. In this journal article critique, I will identify the thesis of the paper, analyze what rhetorical theories the authors use to make their claim, point out the structure of the article, and provide an overall critique of the article. The authors believe that even though many people consider The Exorcist to be a movie of the popular culture in America, the film had a strong impact in the moralistic views of society. In the second paragraph of the article, the authors argue that:…show more content… It at once crystalized America’s disillusionment with Positivism and at the same time reaffirmed transcendent Christian faith as the most viable means of coping with the problems of contemporary life.” (Frentz & Farrell 40)
The authors are advancing the idea of social change towards a more transcendent inclined culture brought upon by the movie. No longer were people interested in believing that logic and reason were the answer to solve the problems in the world during the time. Instead, they felt that they needed to believe in traditions and moral values in order to have some sort of resignation and redemption for their previous positivistic