DU Jinbang

Guangdong University of Foreign Studies

Based on Du (2008)

Persuasion is one of the prime aims of legal discourse, which can be either explicit or implicit. Implicit persuasion usually has stronger effect since it may evade immediate recognition or rebuttal. The model (Figure 1) is formulated for dealing with implicit persuasion. However, it can also be conveniently used for analyzing explicit persuasion.

Implicit persuasion is defined as the elements that do not appear as the information focus of the sentence. The linguistic representation of such persuasion can be analyzed with examples drawn from legal discourse. The results can corroborate the view that evaluation, hedging, presupposition, intertextuality and conversational implicature are prominent perspectives for demystifying implicit persuasion. From such perspectives, the effect of persuasion on the responder can be highlighted, and the fact can be revealed that the persuader himself may be persuaded, which might pass unnoticed if the interaction between them is not considered. Finally the distribution can be mapped in light of the means of implicit persuasion.

Figure 1 Interactive Cognitive Response in Discourse

The message conveyed by Participant A causes Participant B’s cognitive response and finally it may persuade B. Retrospectively, as it may often happen, the message that B sends to A can also cause A’ cognitive responses and persuades A. The whole process of communication and persuasion is within the discourse context. Therefore, the analysis of discourse and discourse information can help uncover the factors of the process and explain how the factors function.

 

References

Du Jinbang 2008. A study on implicit persuasion in legal discourse [J]. Modern Foreign Languages (3).

Petty, R. E., J. T. Cacioppo & R. Goldman 1981, Personal involvement as a determinant of argument-based persuasion [J], Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 41,847-855.