Abstract
This paper aims at investigating presupposition use in Arabic political discourse. The study attempts to answer the feasibility of using presupposition as a convincing tool in Arabic political discourse. The study adopts the Accommodation Analysis model, as examples from the speech of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz on terrorism in 2017 are analyzed from two perspectives: Speaker presupposition perspective and Utterance presupposition perspective. The analysis found that using the Speaker presupposition perspective, presuppositions can pass unblocked, and when a plug exists, the local context creates a hole so that the presupposition can be accommodated successfully. The analysis stresses the value of context to accommodate presuppositions when they encounter projection problems. Presuppositions are more likely blocked when the Utterance presupposition perspective is adopted because different groups may have different interpretations. The findings of the study stress that sharing knowledge, i.e., political beliefs in the context of the study, is vital for a presupposition to pass unblocked.
Highlights
In an era of political and ideological conflicts in the Middle East, political leaders use all available tools to rally their proponents and deter their opponents, including political speeches, which are well-crafted communicative acts drawing heavily on context
Presupposition in political discourse is a strong tool manipulated by politicians for several reasons including passing messages to their audience, and Arabic is not an exception
This paper investigates presupposition use in Arabic political discourse: the case of Saudi King Salman’s speech on terrorism
Summary
In an era of political and ideological conflicts in the Middle East, political leaders use all available tools to rally their proponents and deter their opponents, including political speeches, which are well-crafted communicative acts drawing heavily on context. According to Van Dijk This paper aims at exploring presupposition use in Arabic political discourse, as politicians use different pragmatic tools to achieve different goals, including passing messages to the public. The study attempts to answer how far a presupposition is an effective tool as a convincing technique for proponents and opponents in Arabic political discourse. The study is yet another step in a long road to understand how Arab politicians manipulate Arabic to deliver their messages and convince their audience with their views, choices and ideas
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