Rhetorical Thought and Modern Linguistic Study

Abstract

This study examines the integrative relationship between classical Arabic rhetoric and modern linguistic analysis, particularly text linguistics, which moves beyond the isolated sentence toward analyzing the text as a cohesive entity based on mechanisms of coherence and cohesion. The research begins by defining linguistics as an objective study of language, and then focuses on De Beaugrande’s seven textuality standards: cohesion, coherence, intentionality, acceptability, informativity, situationality, and intertextuality. The study demonstrates that these modern standards are not entirely new, but rather deeply rooted in Arabic rhetorical heritage, as reflected in rhetorical techniques such as conjunction and disjunction, fronting and delaying, metaphorical implication, amplification, quotation, and allusion. These parallels show that Arabic rhetoric anticipated modern linguistic approaches in revealing textual structure and communicative effect. This confirms that rhetoric and modern linguistics are complementary fields in understanding the production, structuring, and reception of texts. The significance of this research lies in its contribution to bridging the perceived gap between the Arabic rhetorical tradition and modern linguistic studies. It demonstrates that Western theories of text analysis are, to a large extent, a continuation and development of the foundations laid by the ancient Arabs in the study of language and rhetoric. The research highlights the urgent need for a contemporary linguistic re-reading of the Arabic rhetorical tradition, one that moves it from the realm of normative, traditional study to the broader sphere of descriptive, systematic analysis. This will infuse it with new vitality and make it an active participant in the ongoing development of human linguistic thought. Consequently, this scholarly endeavor will have a profound impact on both modern Arabic rhetorical and linguistic studies.