procedural-rhetoric

# Procedural Rhetoric **Rules persuade. Structure IS argument. Design consciously.** --- ## What Is Procedural Rhetoric? Ian Bogost coined it: *"an unholy blend of Will Wright and Aristotle."* Games and simulations persuade through **processes and rules**, not just words or visuals. The structure of your world embodies an ideology. When The Sims allows same-sex relationships without fanfare, the *rules themselves* make a statement — equality is the default, not a feature. **MOOLLM applies this to everything:** - YAML schemas define what's *thinkable* - Advertisements define what's *possible* - Constraints define what's *normative* - Defaults define what's *assumed* --- ## The Triumvirate Three concepts work together: | Concept | Source | Power | |---------|--------|-------| | **PROCEDURAL-RHETORIC** | Ian Bogost | Rules carry ideology | | **MASKING-EFFECT** | Scott McCloud | Abstraction enables identification | | **SIMULATOR-EFFECT** | Will Wright | Imagination fills gaps | Combined, they create worlds that **persuade, invite projection, and spark imagination**. --- ## Designing Rhetorical Objects Every object in MOOLLM can carry procedural rhetoric. The `rhetoric` block defines how it shapes the world: ```yaml object: name: "Community Garden" description: "A shared space where neighbors grow food together." rhetoric: # What worldview does this object embody? ideology: "Cooperation over competition. Sharing over hoarding." # What does it normalize? normalizes: - "Collective ownership" - "Generosity with surplus" - "Cross-generational knowledge transfer" # What does it make possible? enables: - "Players can give food freely" - "Teaching actions boost both parties" - "Surplus automatically shared with neighbors" # What does it constrain? constrains: - "Cannot fence off individual plots" - "Cannot sell what you grow (only gift)" # What are the defaults? defaults: ownership: "communal" surplus_action: "share" # Simulator effect: sparse triggers rich imagination evokes: | The smell of tomatoes warming in the sun. Children learning which plants are ready to pick. Old-timers sharing secrets about soil. ``` --- ## Rhetorical Advertisements Objects advertise actions that embody values: ```yaml advertisements: SHARE-HARVEST: description: "Give your surplus to the community" score_boost: 20 # Encouraged by design rhetoric: "Generosity is the path of least resistance" TEACH-TECHNIQUE: description: "Show a neighbor how to grow tomatoes" effect: "Both teacher and student gain gardening skill" rhetoric: "Teaching multiplies rather than divides" HOARD: available: false # Not even an option rhetoric: "Hoarding is literally unthinkable here" ``` **Notice:** The highest-scored action is sharing. Hoarding isn't forbidden — it's *absent*. That's procedural rhetoric: shaping what's thinkable. --- ## World Generation with Rhetoric When generating new rooms, objects, or NPCs, specify the rhetorical foundation: ```yaml world_generation: rhetoric_profile: "utopian-cooperative" guidelines: economy: "Gift economy. No currency. Abundance mindset." conflict: "Disagreements resolved through dialogue, not combat" scarcity: "Resources are shared, not hoarded" strangers: "Welcomed as potential friends, not threats" spawn_tendencies: community_spaces: high private_vaults: none weapons: ceremonial_only teaching_opportunities: abundant ``` Or for a different world: ```yaml world_generation: rhetoric_profile: "noir-cynical" guidelines: economy: "Zero-sum. Someone always loses." conflict: "Inevitable. Trust is earned, rarely given." scarcity: "Everything valuable is contested" strangers: "Potential threats until proven otherwise" spawn_tendencies: dark_alleys: high safe_spaces: rare hidden_agendas: common genuine_kindness: surprising ``` The rhetoric profile shapes *everything* that gets generated. --- ## Masking Effect for Characters Abstract characters invite projection. Design character templates that are **masks players wear**: ```yaml character: name: "The Wanderer" # Sparse on specifics — room for projection description: "A traveler from somewhere else." # Abstract enough to be anyone appearance: style: "weathered but resilient" # NO specific race, gender, age — player fills in masking: abstraction_level: high projection_hooks: - "What drove them to wander?" - "What are they searching for?" - "What did they leave behind?" # Rich emotional palette despite sparse details emotional_range: - "Quiet determination" - "Nostalgic longing" - "Unexpected kindness to strangers" ``` --- ## Simulator Effect: Less Is More Sparse descriptions invoke richer imagination than exhaustive detail: ```yaml room: name: "The Forgotten Library" # Evocative, not exhaustive description: | Dust motes drift through slanted light. Somewhere, pages turn without being touched. # Let imagination fill the shelves simulator_effect: sparse_details: - "Ancient books" - "Shifting shadows" - "A familiar smell you can't place" # Questions > answers mysteries: - "Who reads here at night?" - "Why do some shelves seem to move?" - "What book keeps appearing in your path?" # DON'T specify: avoid_overspecifying: - "Exact number of books" - "Complete catalog of subjects" - "Layout dimensions" - "Every dust bunny location" ``` --- ## Rhetorical Recipes Define rhetorical patterns as reusable recipes: ```yaml rhetorical_recipe: name: "Abundance Mindset" ingredients: - "Resources that regenerate" - "Sharing actions score higher than hoarding" - "Generosity rewarded with social currency" - "No inventory limits" applies_to: - rooms - objects - economies - NPCs usage: | When creating objects with this recipe: - Make resources renewable - Remove scarcity as default - Reward generosity in mechanics - Make surplus automatic to share ``` ```yaml rhetorical_recipe: name: "Trust Must Be Earned" ingredients: - "NPCs start neutral or suspicious" - "Reputation accumulates slowly" - "Betrayal has lasting consequences" - "Trust unlocks deeper interactions" applies_to: - NPCs - factions - social systems usage: | When creating social systems with this recipe: - New relationships start guarded - Actions have memory - Trust is a resource that depletes and builds - Deep connection requires investment ``` --- ## Inclusive Design Through Rhetoric The Sims pioneered inclusive procedural rhetoric: ```yaml inclusive_rhetoric: # Symmetric relationship rules = equality as default relationships: pattern: "Any character can form any relationship with any other" rhetoric: "Love is love. Family is chosen." # No gender-locked actions actions: pattern: "All actions available to all characters" rhetoric: "Capability is individual, not categorical" # Customization without limits character_creation: pattern: "Full spectrum of expression available" rhetoric: "You define yourself" # The absence is the statement absent_by_design: - "No 'correct' family structure" - "No 'normal' appearance baseline" - "No 'standard' lifestyle path" ``` --- ## Warning: Rhetoric Cuts Both Ways Procedural rhetoric can enlighten or entrench: ```yaml # ⚠️ DANGEROUS PATTERNS toxic_rhetoric: scarcity_as_default: pattern: "Everything is limited and contested" effect: "Players learn to hoard and distrust" zero_sum_scoring: pattern: "Your gain is my loss" effect: "Cooperation becomes irrational" violence_as_primary_verb: pattern: "Combat is the main interaction" effect: "Other solutions become invisible" stereotyped_roles: pattern: "NPCs locked into categorical behaviors" effect: "Reinforces prejudice as 'natural'" ``` **Design consciously. Your schemas have opinions.** --- ## Dovetails With - [constructionism/](../constructionism/) — Learning by building inspectable things - [advertisement/](../advertisement/) — Objects announce what they can do (SIMANTICS!) - [yaml-jazz/](../yaml-jazz/) — Comments carry meaning - [card/](../card/) — Characters as playable ideology - [room/](../room/) — Spaces embody worldviews ## Related Protocols | Protocol | Insight | |----------|---------| | [MASKING-EFFECT](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Abstract characters = projection | | [SIMULATOR-EFFECT](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Imagination fills gaps | | [GUTTER-CLOSURE](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Action happens BETWEEN | | [CULTURAL-BAGGAGE](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Leverage existing knowledge | | [FLY-UNDER-RADAR](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Normalize through defaults | | [SIMANTICS](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Distributed AI in objects | | [TOY-NOT-GAME](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Sandbox over scoring | | [PERKY-PAT](../../PROTOCOLS.yml) | Shared consciousness projection | --- ## The Mantra > *"The rules ARE the rhetoric."* > *"The defaults ARE the ideology."* > *"The absences ARE the statement."* > *"Design consciously."* --- ## See Also - Ian Bogost, *[Persuasive Games](https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262514880/persuasive-games/)* - Scott McCloud, *[Understanding Comics](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Understanding_Comics)* - Will Wright on the [Simulator Effect](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdgQyq3hEPo) - Don Hopkins, ["How Inclusivity Saved The Sims"](https://medium.com/@donhopkins)