Holoda’s Weblog

The more abstract these articles are, the more distracted I get with this stuff. Richard Buchanan theorizes design in his article “Rhetoric, Design, and Humanism,” and I just want to briefly comment on the begging in of his piece. I liked his discussion of a subject matters “indeterminacy,” and the three points he makes to try to illustrate why ambiguity is a good thing. First, he says ambiguity in design is distinguished from the scientific tendency towards “neutrality” or the tendency to gravitate towards the “understanding of determinate subject matters” (229). Next, “indeterminacy” implies ongoing change and “diversity,” he emphasizes the “play” of meaning as it is “continually evolving.” Lastly, he says that the indeterminacy of a subject implies that it has many “alternative resolutions.” I thought this particular section really echoed Derrida in his discussion of “play” and the significance of a “non-centered” approach to any text. Viewing things through the lens of multiplicity and ambiguity are essential to enjoy the richness of meaning implied in a text. Now with Buchanan this approach is necessary in regard to any integration of “art,” and he gives a historical overview of design from antiquity to modern times….