WOULD IT KILL YOU TO S TOP DOING THAT? ON SOME RHETORICAL QUESTIONS WHICH FUNCTION AS INDIRECT REQUESTS
WOULD IT KILL YOU TO S TOP DOING THAT? ON SOME RHETORICAL QUESTIONS WHICH FUNCTION AS INDIRECT REQUESTS
Author(s): Džemal ŠpagoSubject(s): Theory of Communication, Rhetoric
Published by: Editura Universităţii de Vest din Timişoara / Diacritic Timisoara
Keywords: action-eliciting questions; conversational implicatures; indirect requests; rhetorical questions;
Summary/Abstract: While, in most instances, the difference between rhetorical and action-eliciting questions is clear-cut, there are certain borderline cases where questions that are apparently rhetorical function as indirect requests. This paper deals with the analysis of examples of such rhetorical questions taken from a number of plays by four American and British playwrights. The results confirm that, although such instances are quite rare, indirect requests can also be made in the form of questions that imply obvious answers, and that contain no elements of asking for information.
Journal: B.A.S. British and American Studies
- Issue Year: 29/2023
- Issue No: 29
- Page Range: 221-230
- Page Count: 10
- Language: English
