Open AccessSENTIMENT(ALITY) AS A MEANS OF PERSUASION: ON THE THIN ICE OF MANIPULATION IN PROTESTANT SERMONS
Author(s) -
Martin Adam
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
discourse and interaction
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.153
H-Index - 4
eISSN - 1805-952X
pISSN - 1802-9930
DOI - 10.5817/di2021-2-5
Subject(s) - persuasion , pathos , protestantism , rhetorical question , ideology , rhetoric , sentimentality , sociology , aesthetics , doctrine , psychology , social psychology , literature , linguistics , philosophy , political science , religious studies , art , law , politics
Religious discourse represents an area of human communication in which persuasion plays a vital role; religious texts seem to be essentially related to the ultimate objective of religion: to create, mediate and legitimise ideology in order to persuade the reader of the veracity of the religious doctrine (Fairclough 1989, Cotterell & Turner 1989: 26-33, van Dijk 1998: 317). The paper seeks to investigate the persuasive strategies and linguistic means employed to convey persuasion in English Protestant sermons. The analysis focuses on the rhetorical role of pathos, which is purposefully evoked by the preacher via wilful employment of aff ect and emotions. Attention will also be paid to the blurred borderline between the intentional use of sentiment and sentimentality, and manipulation.