CLASSIFICATION OF LINGUISTIC WORKS IN ARABIC RHETORICAL GRAMMATICAL THEORY

Abstract

This study addresses the issue of the classification of speech acts in Arabic grammatical and rhetorical theory. It contends that what we find in the grammatical and rhetorical heritage is far richer and more ambitious than the prevalent dualism of assertive and performative utterances that is currently used in both teaching and research. The rationale behind this research is to align my formulation of the issues related to this classification with the findings of Speech Act theory and the issues it has raised, with the hope of juxtaposing the old and new theories for the sake of a better perception. I propose first to go back to the different opinions found in the literature on grammar and rhetoric to trace the transformations that have gradually led to the stability of this conceptual pair (khabar/inshaa’ or assertive/performative utterances). Second, I look into the various criteria for division in grammatical and rhetorical theory, such as conformity, obligation, and non-obligation criteria, and their impact on classification. Accordingly, this article engages in a critical examination of some perceptions which I consider pre-theortical. It examine the classification into assertive utterances and demand (khabar and talab) as well as the classification into assertive and performative utterances, and concludes that the opposition between assertive and performative utterances is quite valid.