Constructivist rhetoric within the tradition of rhetorical studies in Spain

The paper proposes a model of rhetoric based on the theoretical and methodological framework of constructivist positions on knowledge and discourse. The main claim is that the ideological meaning, and specifi cally of political discourse, can be analyzed from a dual perspective, ‘socio-cognitive’ and 'rhetorical-constructivist’. Such an analysis shows that the construction of meaning is inseparable from the deliberate choice made by the agent in communicative practices. The paper claims that rhetoric should return to its origins as a tool for citizens, and that it could become an important instrument for explaining the conflicts of current social and political discourse.