The Eloquence of Persuasive Speech by Abdullah Al-Ghathami, During his Interview with Al-Arabiya FM, on 8/31/2024 AD

Abstract

This study presents a portrait of the eloquence of persuasive discourse exhibited by the renowned Saudi critic and thinker, Abdullah Al-Ghathami. Through a descriptive analytical and critical methodology, it delves into his rhetorical practices and the mechanisms of persuasive influence within his discourse during an interview with Al Arabiya FM on 31/08/2024. The study is divided into two sections: the first is theoretical, providing a descriptive examination of the concept of persuasion and its tools, while the second is analytical, discussing and examining the characteristics of Al-Ghathami’s discourse. It highlights his logical-semantic mechanisms, argumentative techniques, and rhetorical styles, as well as his discursive and linguistic strategies. The analysis underscores the distinct features of his discourse, such as clarity of language, brevity of style, and the structured presentation of his arguments, grounded in facts, realities, and values that served as the basis for his persuasive appeals, which ranged from ethos to logos and authority. Al-Ghathami meticulously reinforced his arguments with various persuasive techniques, including evidence-based reasoning, linguistic strategies like affirmation, negation, concession, analogy, and repetition, all aimed at swaying the audience and guiding them towards acceptance and effective conviction of his ideas.