Disrupting the Scapegoat Mechanism: Steve Barber Versus University of Virginia's College at Wise

Abstract

This case study of the 2008 public conflict between The University of Virginia's College at Wise (UVa-Wise) and student Steve Barber regarding a violent and allegedly threatening short story applies Kenneth Burke's theories of sin, redemption, and victimage to examine how the incident functions as an example of a social actor disrupting the scapegoat mechanism through counterdrama and tactical rhetoric. Considering discourse from Barber, UVa-Wise officials, and individuals who responded to news media coverage via online forums, this article examines how Barber attempted to distance himself from the fatally flawed image of a school shooter while introducing ambiguity into the legal basis for his expulsion, thus disrupting the identification and division principles of his sacrifice.

Notes

If a sacrificial vessel willingly emerges, bears the burden of societal guilt, and embraces atonement, this constitutes mortification (Burke, 1970), an alternate form of victimage, which entails “a symbolic attempt to purify or atone for pollution or guilt through confession or self-sacrifice for the sake of forgiveness” (Moore, 2006, p. 312).

For example, see Boor Tonn, Endress, and Diamond (1993), Brummett (1980), Butterworth (2008), Cloud (1998), Ott and Aoki (2002), Singer (2011), and Turnage (2009).

Tragic and comic are not the only frames Burke identifies. Frames such as romantic or epic are not directly related to victimage and will not be explored in this study.

http://stevebarbertruthsquad.blogspot.com. The post with these links can be accessed at: http://stevebarbertruthsquad.blogspot.com/2009/02/truth-will-out.html

Barber possessed a permit to carry the three guns found in his car on the day of the incident.

http://stevebarbertruthsquad.blogspot.com/2009_02_01_archive.html.

Barber disputes Scalia's justification for being asked not to write in the first person: “[Prof. Scalia] ‘preferred’ that we not write in first person because it's so hard to separate the narrator from the character consistently, blah blah blah” (Jones, 2008a, para. 47).

UVa-Wise offers no official discourse on this story.

As of 2012, Kiersey is an assistant professor at Ohio University–Chillicothe.

It should be noted that here Dr. Kiersey is apparently not speaking from the standpoint of an official representative of the UVa-Wise hierarchy, which perhaps offers him more freedom to speak what he feels is the truth of Barber's character.

http://stevebarbertruthsquad.blogspot.com/2008/05/st-nicholas-cums-more-than-once-year.html.

The allusion to writing about butterflies and rainbows is in reference to the Bernstein (2008) article. The specific passage read: “Mr. Barber says now that he wouldn't write the same story. ‘I want to be at Wise, so I would write about butterflies and rainbows'” (para. 22).