Burke's stature in contemporary rhetorical theory is so obvious and naturalized that thinking of him as the chief architect of the New Rhetoric is commonplace. His writings sanctioned critical pluralism, opening the door to the development of a plethora of critical methods. To read Foucault seriously is to question the boundaries and relationships traditionally drawn between rhetorical theory and rhetorical practice. In at least some of his critical interpretations, Burke assumes a rather standard humanistic stance. For him, a text is a reflection or representation of its creator. Foucault has been praised and blamed for holding an antihumanist position not only because of his stance on authorship, but also because of his observations about the impending end of man. Burke and Foucault both attempt to locate the conditions for historical change or discontinuity. For both thinkers, history and criticism are virtually synonymous. While Burke focuses his attention on intrinsic understanding of human with symbolic action, Foucault does on extrinsic understanding of human with discourse or discursive practice. Burke's and Foucault's projects differ enormously, but they both resound with the same invitations to think differently, and to consider what our criticism will be for.