Author(s): Lauren Astle
Mentor(s): Jared Colton, Hannah Stevens
Institution USU
The research question informing my presentation is how does genetic testing alter how a person identifies themselves, particularly in a rhetorical sense. Specifically, I will examine this question by rhetorically analyzing 23 and Me testimonials regarding ancestor genetic testing. The testimonials will be analyzed through the lens of Kenneth Burke's theory of identification. Other theorists have drawn on identification theory and Burke to study the links between genetic testing and identity such as Michael Peterson, an English professor at Utah Tech University, who wrote his dissertation on identification theory in family history writing. Another such researcher is Wendy Roth, who has done multiple studies on the link between genetic testing and identity, particularly in the way participants identify themselves before and after receiving their results. Informed by identification theory, my presentation will examine testimonials about 23 and Me. This theory posits that audiences see themselves in the rhetoric they consume. Rhetors can also cultivate that connection with their audience. This provides researchers the opportunity to study how interconnected the rhetor, rhetoric, and audience are. Specifically the connection of identity and how rhetoric can shape and adjust it through the exchanged mentioned above. In the context of these 23 and Me testimonials, I expect to learn that testimonials express changes in how the participants perceive themselves. I also expect to see the testimonials as having been written in a way that will be simple and relatable to encourage readers to identify with the people providing these testimonials to possibly persuade them to participate in a genetic ancestry test as well. The analysis of these 23 and Me testimonials will provide insight into the role that genetic testing plays in the forming of rhetorical identity.