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Chapter 6. Interpersonal style(s) in diplomatic argumentation online

A study of argument schemes and evaluation in press releases of UNSC permanent members
  • Elizabeth Swain
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Argumentation across Communities of Practice
This chapter is in the book Argumentation across Communities of Practice

Abstract

This chapter contributes to a growing body of research on diplomatic argumentation with a corpus study of variation in interpersonal style, conducted from an integrated perspective of argument schemes and appraisal theory. Based on 50 press releases taken from the foreign ministry websites of five prominent countries, the study aimed to ascertain whether internationally shared conventions of the kind regulating subjectivity in traditional argumentation settings still operate in the contemporary global, online context. Scheme types (Walton et al, 2008), directives, and the appraisal categories of authorial attitude and graduation (Martin and White, 2005) were taken as markers of interpersonal style and their frequencies calculated for the whole corpus and the five component sub-corpora. The results showed a relatively small range of argument schemes, free use of authorial attitude overall, and considerable variation between the five sub-corpora. Discussion of the different configurations of schemes and appraisal resources focuses on their construction of interpersonal style and government identity.

Abstract

This chapter contributes to a growing body of research on diplomatic argumentation with a corpus study of variation in interpersonal style, conducted from an integrated perspective of argument schemes and appraisal theory. Based on 50 press releases taken from the foreign ministry websites of five prominent countries, the study aimed to ascertain whether internationally shared conventions of the kind regulating subjectivity in traditional argumentation settings still operate in the contemporary global, online context. Scheme types (Walton et al, 2008), directives, and the appraisal categories of authorial attitude and graduation (Martin and White, 2005) were taken as markers of interpersonal style and their frequencies calculated for the whole corpus and the five component sub-corpora. The results showed a relatively small range of argument schemes, free use of authorial attitude overall, and considerable variation between the five sub-corpora. Discussion of the different configurations of schemes and appraisal resources focuses on their construction of interpersonal style and government identity.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Cross-disciplinary perspectives on context-specific argumentation practices 1
  4. Section I. Theoretical perspectives on argumentation – revisited
  5. Chapter 1. Uncontroversial arguments 21
  6. Chapter 2. Connection premises 39
  7. Chapter 3. Argumentative and non-argumentative rhetorical content 57
  8. Section II. Argumentation practices in political discourse environments
  9. Chapter 4. Questioning the questionable 73
  10. Chapter 5. Reason and passion in political rhetoric 99
  11. Chapter 6. Interpersonal style(s) in diplomatic argumentation online 127
  12. Section III. Argumentation practices in legal discourse environments
  13. Chapter 7. The interpreter-mediated police interview as argumentative discourse in context 151
  14. Chapter 8. Context and genre in judicial argumentation 177
  15. Section IV. Argumentation practices in debates on societal and family issues
  16. Chapter 9. Caught between profitability and responsibility 197
  17. Chapter 10. Multi-participant TV debate as an argumentative activity type 229
  18. Chapter 11. The transmission of what is taken for granted in children’s socialization 259
  19. Section V. Argumentation practices in multi-modal discourse environments
  20. Chapter 12. Visual arguments in activists’ campaigns 291
  21. Chapter 13. Attacks on the cartoonist’s strategic manoeuvring 317
  22. Subject index 341
  23. Name index 339
https://doi.org/10.1075/aic.10.07swa

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Cross-disciplinary perspectives on context-specific argumentation practices 1
  4. Section I. Theoretical perspectives on argumentation – revisited
  5. Chapter 1. Uncontroversial arguments 21
  6. Chapter 2. Connection premises 39
  7. Chapter 3. Argumentative and non-argumentative rhetorical content 57
  8. Section II. Argumentation practices in political discourse environments
  9. Chapter 4. Questioning the questionable 73
  10. Chapter 5. Reason and passion in political rhetoric 99
  11. Chapter 6. Interpersonal style(s) in diplomatic argumentation online 127
  12. Section III. Argumentation practices in legal discourse environments
  13. Chapter 7. The interpreter-mediated police interview as argumentative discourse in context 151
  14. Chapter 8. Context and genre in judicial argumentation 177
  15. Section IV. Argumentation practices in debates on societal and family issues
  16. Chapter 9. Caught between profitability and responsibility 197
  17. Chapter 10. Multi-participant TV debate as an argumentative activity type 229
  18. Chapter 11. The transmission of what is taken for granted in children’s socialization 259
  19. Section V. Argumentation practices in multi-modal discourse environments
  20. Chapter 12. Visual arguments in activists’ campaigns 291
  21. Chapter 13. Attacks on the cartoonist’s strategic manoeuvring 317
  22. Subject index 341
  23. Name index 339
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