This thesis examines the revision of eighteenth century gothic fiction by Dean Koontz's twentieth century horror novel, Intensity. In particular, the novel invites Aristotelian rhetorical analysis through the competing appeals staged by its antagonist, Vess, and its protagonist, Chyna.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

This thesis analyzes George Canning's persuasive campaign to gain British recognition of Latin America. The modification of an exigence capable of change through persuasion was emphasized, and the audiences which had the power to bring about the change were identified. The campaign was broken into seven discernible, but dependent, stages which were examined to test the progress of the campaign. Canning was the prime mover of the campaign, and through a series of petitions, speeches, and press releases plus other strategic maneuvers, gained the necessary public and political support to successfully achieve his goal.

Three sound bites, Whatever it takes (55 seconds), Safer, Stronger (30 seconds), and War on Terror (30 seconds), of President George W. Bush during the presidential election of 2004 will be explored and unpacked.

Thesis (MA (African Languages))--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / This study has the main goal of investigating the speech act of persuasion in isiXhosa. The main aim of the investigation is to examine the characteristics of persuasion in remedial interchanges based on the isiXhosa pragmatics. The study is concerned with the strategies people use when persuading targets, how message sources seek compliance, how targets resist and / or comply and how influence interactions are structured and what constraints on conversation need to be taken into account.

Text in Xhosa. / Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study concentrates on the critical evaluation of persuasive messages. In doing this, four articles have been analysed according to two premises namely: the content premises and the process premises. The content premises concentrate solely on the theme of four articles which is the persuasive message towards the transformation of South Africa. In content premises emphasis is put on the cause to effect reasoning. The process premises focus on the three different types of processes that is: the needs, attitude and consistency. In the needs emphasis is put on the need for emotional security and on the need for reassurance of worth. In attitude emphasis is put on evaluative responses. In consistency emphasis is put on the course of dissonance and consonance. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie fokus op die kritiese evaluering van oorredende boodskappe. In hierdie navorsing is vier artikels ontleed volgens twee premisse, naamlik die inhoud premis en die proses premis. Die inhoud premis word ondersoek na aanleiding van die tema van vier artikels wat In oorredende boodskap gerig op die transformasie van Suid-Afrika verteenwoordig. In die inhoud premis word klem gelê op die oorsaak-na-effek redenering. Die proses premis fokus op drie verskillende tipes prosesse, dit is behoeftes, houding en konsekwentheid. In die behoeftes analise word klem gelê op die behoefte aan emosionele sekuriteit en op die behoefte vir versekering van waarde. In die geval van houding, word klem gelê op evaluatiewe response. In die geval van konsekwentheid word klem gelê op die roete van dissonansie en konsonansie.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Education / Master / Master of Education

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of news commentary on the image of political candidates. Subjects were exposed to a political debate, which was followed by three experimental manipulations of a news commentary. One group saw a commentary biased toward one candidate and against the other. In a second group the bias was reversed. A third experimental group saw a neutral commentary and the control group viewed the debate but no commentary. The primary statistical analyses used were a multivariate analysis of variance, a multiple discriminant analysis and a factor analysis. The results indicated that the commentary did have some effects on the perception of the candidates' images. Furthermore, the commentaries affected the amount of the candidates' message which was recalled by the subjects, and cued the subjects to recall specific issues which were mentioned in the commentaries. Finally, the factor analysis indicated certain characteristics of the images of political candidates.

This study uses Karlyn Campbell's concept of feminine rhetorical style as a theoretical framework for analyzing the rhetoric of Barbara Bush's 1990 Wellesley College commencement address. Through a systematic evaluation of Barbara Bush's speech, this study reveals that her rhetoric exemplifies feminine rhetorical style. The analysis also concludes that Barbara Bush's personal tone, specifically her use of narrative and humor, is the most useful and effective characteristic of her feminine rhetorical style. Using feminine rhetorical style, Barbara Bush successfully dissipates some of the tension she faced prior to the graduation ceremony at Wellesley College. Therefore, this study reveals that feminine rhetorical style is an attractive alternative for speakers seeking to build identification in hostile situations when identification is, or appears to be, lacking. / by Bethany Lynne Doran. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2010. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2010. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

This thesis shall produce the translation of six essays from Italian author Erri De Luca's collection PIanoterra (1995). De Luca's work often defies traditional attempts at translation due to its philosophical and polysemantic nature ; more than mere essays or accounts of, for instance, his involvement with humanitarian missions in Bosnia, his work consists of reflections on life and language itself. De Luca, himself a prolific translator from Ancient Hebrew, Russian and Yiddish, oftentimes emphasizes the origins of specific words, making carefully studied choices in his own writing. Therefore, in addition to the six carefully produced translations with special attention paid to De Luca's word choices and an awareness of the etymological weight each one carries, this thesis shall also provide a theoretical framework emphasizing a sense-based translation which will allow the freedom necessary to explore De Luca's polysemy as well as commentary highlighting the challenges encountered in translating his work. / by Jonathan O'Neill. / Abstract in English. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2012. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.