Active participation within written and spoken argumentation: The use of engagement markers across different genres

Abstract

This paper aims to demonstrate how writers and speakers actively engage readers and listeners within the argumentation through the use of engagement markers as a metadiscourse category. More precisely, it sets out to explore the function and use of engagement markers, i.e. personal pronouns, directives and questions, in three different genres, one written (editorials from newspapers) and two spoken (excerpts from talk shows and closing arguments from trials) in two different languages, Macedonian and English. The analysis is carried out on nine editorials from American and nine from Macedonian newspapers, nine excerpts from American and nine from Macedonian talk-shows, as well as five closing arguments from American trials and five from Macedonian. It is essential for writers and speakers to know how to balance the use of these markers in order to avoid being intrusive and appear more persuasive to the readers and listeners. The research shows that there are differences in the use of the markers in the three genres in both languages. They were most frequently used in the English spoken texts (talk shows and closing arguments) and least frequently in the Macedonian closing arguments. As for their use in editorials, they were used moderately in both languages. So, on the whole, the analysis reveals that the choice of markers within the same genre depends on cultural differences, i.e. the format and perception of the type of text by the different societies. Furthermore, it also shows differences in the choice of markers across the three genres in both languages. Finally, although carried out on a relatively small corpus, this research gives insight into the dialogic nature of argumentation and its impact on the persuasive effect of written and spoken texts in different genres and languages. Key words: metadiscourse, argumentation, engagement markers, editorials, talk shows, closing arguments