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Troubled waters: Argument as sociability revisited

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 February 2009

David A. Lee  and
Jennifer J. Peck
David A. Lee
Affiliation:
English Department, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Australia 4072
Jennifer J. Peck
Affiliation:
English Department, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Australia 4072
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Abstract

Schiffrin 1984 has claimed that there is a speech activity called “sociable argument,” characterized by the presence of discursive features such as vulnerability of argumentative frames and cooperative strategies. Although a form of talk aptly labeled “sociable argument” undoubtedly exists, Schiffrin's analysis is problematic; the features she identifies as characteristic of this discursive category also show up in argument that is serious and non-sociable. This raises general questions about the nature of the criteria applicable to the definition of forms of talk. (Discourse analysis, argument, conflict, conversation, cooperation, rhetoric)

Type
Research Article
Information
Language in Society , Volume 24 , Issue 1 , March 1995 , pp. 29 - 52
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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References

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