Goncalves, Zan Meyer. Sexuality and the Politics of Ethos in the Writing Classroom. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 2005. 181 pp.

by J.A. Rice

In many ways, Sexuality and the Politics of Ethos in the Writing Classroom articulates a central interest for feminist pedagogues: how can we, as educators, engender a classroom environment, space, or practice that best promotes critical awareness of and social action against such social ills as sexism, racism, homophobia, etc.? For Goncalves, this question is best answered through a pedagogy that helps students use various identity performances (especially those identifying as feminist and GLBT) and rhetoric/writing practices based on a revised understanding of ethos. This emphasis on ethos, she claims, helps us understand "how writers and speakers regularly craft identity performances for rhetorical effect" and how these identities are informed by/inform local and classroom contexts for social change (xii). By situating ethos and identity at the core of her pedagogy, Goncalves builds upon and extends much feminist and queer studies scholarship—most notably, those theories and practices that desire a more discursively pragmatic social strategy and/or politic. Sexuality and the Politics of Ethos in the Writing Classroom speaks to these concerns and others through five chapters and an extensive appendix of practices and activities for the writing classroom.