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Abstract
The relationship between a father and daughter strongly influences a daughter's sense of self and how she communicates with others. Bormann's Symbolic Convergence Theory (SCT) was used to conduct a fantasy theme analysis (FTA) of the academic and popular rhetoric produced by and about fathers and daughters. Four rhetorical visions were identified: the Knight in Shining Armor, the Buddy, the Authoritarian, and the Shadow, each composed of dramas regarding description of the father, activities and communication he engaged in with his daughter, and the results of their relationship. Additionally, nine non‐vision dramas were identified. Images from the FTA were transferred to a Q‐sort card deck, which was sorted by 45 adult daughters to assess their level of acceptance, rejection, or neutrality to the dramas. QUANAL analysis revealed four types from the population which closely corresponded to the rhetorical analysis: the Essential Companion, the Silent Intruder, the Loving Patriarch, and the Storyteller. Similarities and differences between the rhetorical images and the self‐referent types from the subject pool are addressed, followed by theoretical, methodological, relational and practical implications.