Argumentative strategies and stylistic devices

Abstract

The extended pragma-dialectical argumentation theory assumes that people engaged in argumentative discourse manoeuvre strategically. In argumentative reality, the strategic manoeuvring is often carried out according to an argumen-tative strategy. Language users make an effort to present their strategic manoeuvres in a specific way and the analysis of the stylistic choices in actual argumentative discourse is the most important basis for identification and analysis of argumentative strate-gies. In this article, it is shown what requirements must be satisfied by a systematic stylistic analysis of argu-mentative discourse, and the results of such an analysis are illustrated by means of a case study.