Critique on Relational Dialectics Essays - 662 Words

Critique on Relational Dialectics A Theory by Baxter and Montgomery Relational Dialectics concerns itself with trying to explain the intricacies of close interpersonal relationships such as those with a lover, close friend, or family. Written by two women, Leslie Baxter and Barbara Montgomery, it comes across a little more touchy-feely than other theories. This Humanist quality in the way it iw presented allows myself to critique Relational Dialectics in the following fashion. According to Griffin, there are five standards that are reliable to the critique of Humanist theories, and they are: New understanding of people; clarification of values; aestetic appeal; community agreement; reform society. Taking a closer look. New†¦show more content†¦This basic claim about a uniquely human characteristic is the very cornerstone that Relational Dialectics builds off. Clarification of Values Any good Humanistic theory brings out the values of people into the open. Baxter and Montgomery, merely by writing this theory, have made a stance that explains their feelings about personal interactions. They draw much of their theory from the idea of contradiction. Since they found most people wanted to embrace their desires for unity with another, but on the other hand have differentiation from them, it led Baxter and Montgomery to one thing. Their basic claim of pushmi-pullyu, an idea taken from the animal concept in Dr. Doolittles chronicles. Whereas the animals were fairly rare, relational contradiction seems to be more frequent. Aestetic Appeal This part of the critique plays on how well the theorist(s) paint a picture in the head of the reader. I happen to like the example that Baxter and Montgomery give while referring to contradiction, but the rest of the theory actually comes across bland to myself. I almost think that these dialectics seem pretty self explanatory. However, what I did like about Relational Dialectics from reading it was its easy-to-follow form. It definitely goes from point-to-point in a manner that is easy for the reader to understand. Community Agreement According to many other rhetoricians,Show MoreRelatedRelational Dialectics Theory Essay2542 Words   |  11 PagesComparing relationships to unicycles seems strange or unlikely, however the constant strive for balance against opposing forces is a perfect description for relational dialectics theory (Griffin, 2009). Barbara Montgomery, an interpersonal communication scholar, describes riding a unicycle as a task of contradicting forces, constantly pulling against each other in a tug-of-war motion. 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