Doctoral Degrees (African Languages)
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Browsing Doctoral Degrees (African Languages) by Subject "Argumentation"
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- ItemArgument realization, causation and event semantics in Kiwoso(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-12) Mallya, Aurelia; Visser, Marianna W.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of African Languages.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study investigates the properties of change of state and change of location/position verbs in relation to argument realization, (anti-)causative alternation, and event semantics in Kiwoso. To execute this study, firstly, a representative sample of change of state and change of location/position verbs as outlined by Levin (1993) were identified with regard to their syntactic and semantic characteristics. The data were gathered through introspections, complemented by other native speakers’ acceptability judgements, and text collection. The study adopts syntactic decomposition approach as postulated by Alexiadou et al. (2006, 2015) and Alexiadou (2010). Given that an adequate explanation of the syntactic behaviour of alternation constructions in Kiwoso is contingent on aspectual verb class distinctions, Vendler's (1957) aspectual approach as developed further by Verkuyl (1972) and Smith (1997) is invoked. The two approaches are supplemented by Distributed Morphology, Minimalism, and Cartography. Research on the (anti-)causative alternation focuses on two central issues: firstly, the lexical semantic properties that determine verbal alternations, and the derivational relationship between the alternates, and secondly, the similarities between (anti-)causative, passive, and middle alternations. This study demonstrates that both externally and internally caused change of state verbs, as well as change of location/position verbs productively alternate in Kiwoso. The findings of the study establish that participation of verbs in (anti-)causative alternation is determined by the encyclopaedic lexical semantics of verb roots. The results illustrate that the causative variants of externally caused change of state verbs in Kiwoso are morphologically marked, but the anticausative alternates are unmarked. The study demonstrates further that both causative and anticausative variants of internally caused change of state, and change of location/position verbs are morphologically unmarkedin Kiwoso. The study findings demonstrate that categorization of verb roots into semantic and aspectual verb classes is mainly determined by an incremental theme argument, and the grammatical aspect. In addition, the findings establish that an applicative suffix has an effect on the aspectual property of change of location/position verbs in Kiwoso. The results of the study demonstrate that realization of an external argument is determined by the lexical semantic property of verb roots. The findings establish that verbs which denote human-oriented events realize an agent and instrument arguments, but not causers, whereas other verbs realize agent, instrument, and causer arguments. The findings demonstrate that anticausative, passive, and middle constructions are syntactically similar in that they do not express the syntactic external (subject) argument, but they are semantically different aspects. The general findings of the study suggest that alternating verbs in Kiwoso are compositionally built in the syntax. This makes derivational approaches inadequate in accounting for the properties of these verbs. Therefore, the study adopts the family of generative syntax approaches which adequately account for the properties of these verbs in alternation constructions.causer arguments. The findings demonstrate that anticausative, passive, and middle constructions are syntactically similar in that they do not express the syntactic external (subject) argument, but they are semantically different aspects. The general findings of the study suggest that alternating verbs in Kiwoso are compositionally built in the syntax. This makes derivational approaches inadequate in accounting for the properties of these verbs. Therefore, the study adopts the family of generative syntax approaches which adequately account for the properties of these verbs in alternation constructions.
- ItemArgumentation in doctor-patient consultations in EkeGusii: A pragma-dialectical approach(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2018-12) Basweti, Nobert Ombati; Visser, Marianna W.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts Social Sciences. Dept. of African languages.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This dissertation investigates the argumentative discourse of (Eke)Gusii doctor-patient consultations in Kenya using the framework of the extended pragma-dialectical theory of argumentation. The study particularly investigates how Gusii doctors and Gusii patients strategically manoeuvre in resolving differences of opinion through the analysis of simulated medical consultations in (Eke)Gusii. The data for the research constituted transcripts of audio recordings of twelve consultation simulations conducted in (Eke)Gusii involving Gusii doctors and Gusii simulated patients with already diagnosed cases of HIV and AIDS, diabetes or cancer at The Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital, a public hospital in Kenya. The analysis conducted employed the pragma-dialectical method which entailed the interpretation, reconstruction and evaluation of the dialogues. Utilising the model of critical discussion, the study also assessed the display of communication accommodation and attitudinal aspects of evaluative language use in strategic manoeuvring in doctor-patient consultations. This multiperspective study establishes that the interplay of the macro contextual exigencies of contemporary western medicine and the traditional Gusii sociocultural belief system concerning illness, which determine the nature and properties of strategic manoeuvring in the (Eke)Gusii doctor-patient consultation give rise to a hybrid of genres of consultation and persuasion. Displaying explicit and invoked evaluative language, the Gusii doctors and Gusii patients continually exploit linguistic and psychological convergence or divergence in their choice of presentational devices to accommodate the institutional constraints of the two institutions and realising the composite institutional point. The study identifies and characterises the prototypical pattern of argumentation in the Gusii medical consultation, as one in which Gusii doctors and Gusii patients employ pragmatic argumentation as the main argumentation to defend a desirable effect of a prescriptive standpoint. The findings of the study indicate that symptomatic argumentation or other pragmatic arguments entail the support argumentation pattern for both parties but with diverse sources of authority. The sociocultural, macro and discursive contextual circumstances of the Gusii medical consultation determine the supporting argumentation and responses to the critical questions of pragmatic arguments. The study concludes that argumentation in the (Eke)Gusii medical consultation presents empirical evidence for the enhancement of the strategic manoeuvre design of the extended pragmadialectical theory with elements of evaluative language use and communication accommodation.
- ItemArgumentation involving account-giving and self-presentation in tanzanian parliamentary debates: a praga-dialectical perspective(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-12) Msagalla, Brighton Phares; Visser, Marianna Wilhelmina; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of African Languages.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study investigatesthe actual argumentative reality in the resolution ofdifferences of opinion involving account-giving and self-presentation in Tanzanian parliamentary debatesin Kiswahili. The research data that are analysed in this study come fromthe Hansard transcripts of the official proceedingsof the annual ministerial budget debates which were collected in their original form from the website ofthe Tanzania’s Bunge(www.parliament.go.tz/hansards-list).The study concentrateson three annual parliamentary debates from the last three years of President Kikwete’s second term of presidency. Following a systematic reconstruction of the selected data, the analysis focuseson thedebateson the constitutional review processin Tanzania, the ‘controversial issues’of the Union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar, and the annual budget speech in the Ministry of Community Development, Gender and Children. In the analysis ofthe selected debates, the study employsthepragma-dialectical theory of argumentation as the main theory and anaccount-giving model as a complementarytheory. The findings of the study indicatethatthe first three stages of the (critical)discussions in all the three debatesexemplify, to a greater or lesser degree,the proposedpragma-dialecticalstages of a critical discussion. However, the concluding stage in all the three debates isnot materialised in the manner proposed by the theory. As regards the code of conduct, while there arecases where the rules are observedin all the three debates (e.g. the freedom rule), instances of ruleviolation (e.g. the relevance rule) arealso found. The findings further suggest that MPs employ various modes of strategic manoeuvring from all the three aspectsof topical potential, audience demand, and presentational devices. For instance, MPs’ presentational devices includethestrategic use of accusation of inconsistency, evasion, metaphors (and other figurative expressions), narratives, personal attacks, quotations, and rhetorical questions. Concerningthe prototypical argumentative patterns,theministers’ prescriptive standpoints are,atthe first level of defence,justifiedby either pragmatic argumentationin coordinative argumentationor pragmatic argumentation andsymptomatic argumentationin coordinative or multiple argumentation. In the next levels of defence, pragmatic and symptomatic argumentation arejustifiedby various (sub)types of argumentation, including authorityargumentationfrom statistics(or statistical argumentation), argumentation from example, and causal argumentation. In regard tothe argumentative style, the ministers’ argumentative style seems to exemplify a strategic combination ofdetached and engaged stylesand the argumentative style by the opposition’sspokespersons and other MPsexemplifies an engaged style. Moreover, all the four account-giving strategies (plus silence) are manifested in the ministers’ accounts offailure events as theministersaccept, deny, or evaderesponsibility.
- ItemStrategic maneuvering in the 2015 tanzanian presidential election campaign speeches: a pragma-dialectical perspective(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-04) Mwombeki, Gaspardus; Visser, Marianna W.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Science. Dept. of African Languages.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study investigates strategic maneuvering in the 2015 Tanzanian presidential campaign speeches of Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) and Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA)/Umoja wa Katiba ya Wananchi (UKAWA) in the Extended pragma-dialectical theory of argumentation. The study employs the Extended pragma-dialectical theory of argumentation to analyse two inaugural speeches conducted in Kiswahili language. It also analyses a part of the CCM closing campaign, that is, a response to some argumentations of the CHADEMA/UKAWA. The study evaluates argumentation structures, argument schemes, presentational devices, successful observation of rules, identification of derailments of rules, and effectiveness and reasonableness in argumentative discourse as objectives of the study. The data were collected from the Tanzania Broadcasting Corporation (TBC) and from other online sources. The audio-visual speeches were transcribed and translated from Kiswahili into English. The findings of the study reveal that the complex argumentation structure dominates the rest of the argumentation structures in the speeches. Secondly, in the perspective of Pragma-dialects, the findings indicate that the three argumentation schemes namely causal relation argumentation scheme, symptomatic argumentation schemes and argumentation by analogy are employed in the speeches. More importantly, the pragmatic and majority argumentation is the prototypical argumentative pattern in the 2015 Tanzanian presidential election campaign speeches. Thirdly, findings manifest that the three aspects of strategic maneuvering namely the topical potential, audience demand, and presentational devices, are employed accordingly. Features of persuasion mainly reflected in the study include appealing to liberal and conservative presumptions, commemorating Mwalimu Nyerere and other leaders during the time of independence. The fourth finding from the study demonstrates that critical discussion rules frequently observed are the the standpoint rule, the argument scheme rule, the relevance rule, and the freedom rule. The fifth finding from the study reavel that cmpaigners frequently violate the language rule. The findings indicate that different presentational devices and criteria for reasonableness are employed, to a large extent, in presidential campaign speeches. The study recommends further investigations in the presidential campaign speeches in Kenya where Kiswahili perhaps is not used as language of independence and unity. Furthermore, an investigation into sermon speeches in other African languages in Tanzania would give insights on how the delicate balance in maintained in the Extended pragma-dialectical perspective. The study can be extended to investigating strategic maneuvering in presidential campaign speeches by merging monological speeches in dialectical profiles.