Readers and authors: Fictionalized constructs or dynamic collaborations?

Abstract

Rhetorical studies of audience have portrayed readers as fictionalized constructs and as concrete realities. In contrast to such static portrayals, the actions and concerns of three physicists presenting their work to biologists, chemists, and physicists suggest a conception of audience that is social and dynamic. By entering into frequent collaborations with their readers, the physicists acquired knowledge that helped them to construct a persuasive account of their work.