Abstract
It is common knowledge that hedging devices as a rhetorical technique common in all persuasive writing are considerably important in scientific discourse, for they are tools which facilitate presenting claims or arguments in a polite, acceptable and respectful manner. In addition, they are discoursal resources available to a scientific writer’s propositions to express uncertainty, skepticism, and open-mindedness. Research articles are an important means of communication between different members of a discourse community, and will be convincing to a certain extent only when authors are able to employ rhetorical conventions, such as hedging devices, persuasively. However, hedging is a problematic aspect in EAP learning since rarely are the learners able to hedge their statements appropriately, engineering students not being an exception. Therefore, this article tends to linguistically analyze the function of rhetorical impact of using hedging devices in the results and discussion part of a civil engineering research article published in the Asian Journal of Civil Engineering (Building & Housing) to conclude that a greater and more systematic attention should be given to hedging devices considering their importance in EAP. The implication is that students, especially the Non Native English Speakers, be taught how to recognize and effectively use hedging devices in their writing as they do not seem to be familiar with hedges and therefore find it particularly difficult to hedge their statements appropriately. Keywords: hedging devices, discourse community, linguostylistic analysis, Civil Engineering Research Articles
Highlights
It is said time and again that in communicative situations within which a negotiation between the writer and the reader is implied in academic contexts, hedging is generally used as an important rhetorical strategy to mitigate the strength of scientific claims in order to reduce the potential threat that new claims make on other researchers (Meyers, 1989)
In scientific writing the use of hedging devices is of paramount importance for claims to be confirmed by members of any discourse community as they allow scientific writers to present statements with appropriate accuracy, caution and humility
Numerous studies show that hedging represents more than one word in every 50, or one hedge in every two or three sentences, the distribution is explained by the different rhetorical purposes of texts (Skelton, 1988; Hanania and Akhtar, 1985). This is what according to Hyland (1995) is an indication of a level of frequency far higher than many characteristic features of scientific discourse, which traditionally attract much attention in ESP/EAP courses
Summary
It is said time and again that in communicative situations within which a negotiation between the writer and the reader is implied in academic contexts, hedging is generally used as an important rhetorical strategy to mitigate the strength of scientific claims in order to reduce the potential threat that new claims make on other researchers (Meyers, 1989). Numerous studies show that hedging represents more than one word in every 50, or one hedge in every two or three sentences, the distribution is explained by the different rhetorical purposes of texts (Skelton, 1988; Hanania and Akhtar, 1985) This is what according to Hyland (1995) is an indication of a level of frequency far higher than many characteristic features of scientific discourse, which traditionally attract much attention in ESP/EAP courses. Being persuasive in academic writing means being able to anticipate possible negative reactions to one’s claims To this goal, familiarity with the persuasive practices of the discipline, encoding ideas, employing warrants, and framing arguments in ways that the potential audience will find most convincing is crucial. Being aware of this will provide the author with recognizing and choosing the rhetorical options available in their fields to appeal to readers from within the boundaries of their disciplines
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