The Argumentative Techniques in the Rhetorical Boasts of Mamluk Era Prose

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the argumentative value of rhetorical devices in prose boasting in the Mamluk era, utilizing an analytical approach and drawing on the principles of argumentative criticism and its mechanisms. It examines the role of these devices in strengthening arguments, as they are among the most important tools that endow a text with persuasive power, effectively influencing opponents and convincing audiences of the content of the discourse. The research is divided into an introduction, two main chapters, and a conclusion. The first chapter defines the concepts of argumentation and prose boasting. The second chapter focuses on the argumentative value of rhetorical devices, such as interrogative, imperative, negative imperative, and invocative. The study concludes with a number of findings, the most significant being those rhetorical devices— interrogative, imperative, negative imperative, and invocative —were prominently featured in the boasting in the Mamluk era, and their argumentative achievement value emerged through their semantic function, their persuasive energy, and their influence on the recipient with the content of the discourse.