After the Prestige: A Postmodern Analysis of Penn and Teller

Abstract

Liz Miller is a third year PhD student in the department of communication studies at the University of Kansas. She received her Masters at Illinois State University and her Bachelor's at Miami University. Her main research interests lie at the nexus between the rhetoric of science and the rhetoric of Islam. Joseph P. Zompetti (Ph.D., Wayne State) is Professor in the School of Communication at Illinois State University. His research interests include the rhetoric of magic, political communication, rhetorical theory and argumentation. He has published extensively in journals such as the Western Journal of Communication, Culture Theory & Critique, and Argumentation. ABSTRACT By mocking the magic community and revealing the secret behind some of their tricks, Penn and Teller perform a kind of parodic and post-modern " anti-magic. " Penn and Teller display an artful use of rhetoric; in exposing the secrets and shortcomings of conjuring, they are revolutionizing the way people think about both the art of magic and the magic community. Individuals such as Penn and Teller may use parody to subvert the hegemonic interpretations. However, we also know that it is difficult to bring down a system while operating within that system. Thus, this article explores the way Penn and Teller are challenging the metanarrative of the magic community, using several of the duo's more popular illusions as examples for analysis. Ultimately, this paper should help us gain a better understanding of the way parody can be used to challenge hegemonic conceptions, and the limitations of this type of rhetorical approach.