A Rhetorical Structural Analysis of Introductions in L2 Saudi Students’ Argumentative Essays

Abstract

The introduction is a pivotal sub-genre in academic writing because of its rhetorical role in determining whether a written work is necessary and worth reading. A significant body of research has examined the rhetorical structure of introductions in different written text genres, such as research articles and dissertations. However, little research has investigated the rhetorical moves of the introduction in undergraduate students’ academic essays, particularly in the Saudi context. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the rhetorical moves in the introductions of argument essays. Also, the rhetorical strategies (steps) employed to construct each move in the introduction did not receive much attention. Hence, the second purpose of this study is to explore how each move in the introduction was rhetorically constructed. This study analyzed 49 introductions from argument essays written by L2 undergraduate Saudi students at a Saudi university. The textual data was analyzed according to Hyland’s (1990) five moves in the introduction section of his proposed model. The results showed that most students employed Move 1, Move 2, and Move 3 to compose their introductions. It was also found that while Move 4 was not used in several introductions, Move 5 was excluded from all the texts. The study also determined lists of steps to construct Move 1 and Move 2, whereas Move 3 was mostly constructed with the thesis statement (Step 2). The findings of this study have pedagogical and research implications for L2 students’ academic writing.