The Rhetoric of Religious Cults

Terms of Use and Abuse
2005
ISBN: 978-1-4039-4285-2
Verlag: Springer Nature B.V.

Buch, Englisch, 208 Seiten, Format (B × H): 150 mm x 225 mm, Gewicht: 408 g

The Rhetoric of Religious Cults takes as its departure point the notion that 'cults' have a distinctive language and way of recruiting members. First outlining a rhetorical framework, which encompasses contemporary discourse analysis, the persuasive texts of three movements - Scientology, Jehovah's Witnesses and Children of God - are analysed in detail and their discourse compared with other kinds of recruitment literature. Cults' distinctive negative profile in society is not matched by a linguistic typology. Indeed, this negative profile seems to rest on the semantics and application of the term 'cult' itself.

Zielgruppe

Research

Autoren/Hrsg.

Mooney, A.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Acknowledgements Introduction The 'Cults' and the Canons The Church of Scientology 'The Story of Dianetics and Scientology' The Jehovah's Witnesses The Family Is Cult Language Distinctive? Cults: What They Are Cults, Cults Everywhere? Conclusion: McKinsey as Cult? Bibliography Index

Über Autor(innen)

ANNABELLE MOONEY is a Research Associate at the Centre for Language and Communication Research at Cardiff University, UK.