Procedural Rhetoric

I was very interested by Bogost's term procedural rhetoric in regards to gaming. Games represent how real and imagined systems work, and make it so players can interact with those systems and form judgments about them. Bogost draws on the history of rhetoric and analyzes rhetoric's function in videogames. Though it might seem like it at first, videogames aren't classified under visual rhetoric (using imagery and visual representation persuasively.) Videogames seem to open a new door for persuasion and create an entirely new rhetoric.

Bogost's "procedural rhetoric" is a type of rhetoric tied strongly to technology and computers. It is based on running processes and following rules. The example of The McDonalds Game is given to illustrate procedural rhetoric at work.The game is an obvious critique of McDonald's business practices where the player has to manage a third-world cattle pasture and raise them as cheaply as possible. It even goes as far as having the player negotiate with and bribe lobbyists to reduce complaints against the company. This example is quite overt, but being aware of procedural rhetoric is very important. Just like all rhetoric students learn, it is our job to be cautious and highly attuned to the types of rhetoric that exist everywhere in our lives. Bogost's argument was very intriguing because it explains a rhetoric that was born with the digital age that will only progress. We need to take these videogames seriously and get to know them well in order to learn the complexities and possibilities of rhetoric within them.