AFFIRM: Affirmation
| AFFIRM: Affirmation | |
|---|---|
| Category | Sentence Construction & Syntactical Stylistics (‘ilm al-ma‘ānī) |
| Subcategory | Sentence-Type Switches |
| Balaghascore.com | |
| Code | A-2 |
| BalaghaBase.org | |
| Code | Q42 |
| OpenAlex | |
| ID | W4415329527 |
| Cite this page | |
| 🔗 DOI | 10.64393/balagha.Q42 |
| Download PDF | |
| Taxonomy | |
| ARDT | v0.1.0, v0.1.1 |
Definition
Affirmation of the communicator’s proposition which is being conveyed in a reporting sentence takes place through the use of certain affirmatory constructions such as:
- The particle ʾinna starting a nominal sentence.
- The particles la-, ʾin, ʾan, mā, lā, and min, and the prefix bi-.
- The construction ʾammā ... fa-.
- The future-tense prefix sa- and the future-tense particle sawfa.
- The use of qad before a past-tense verb.
- Explicit pronouns.
- Oaths using letters such as wa-, bi- or ta- prefixed to another oath word such as “Allah”.[1]
- Light affirmation with the suffix -n and heavy affirmation with the suffix -nna.
- Repetition of a negation.
- The particle ʾinnamā.
- Affirmative words such as ḥattā.
- Use of the negation followed by an exception.
Depending on the status of the addressee, reporting sentences may utilise 3 levels of affirmation:
- No affirmation: The addressee is open-minded or neutral about the communicator’s proposition: there is no requirement for affirmation.
سليم: أنا مريض.
Salim: I am ill.
- Light affirmation: The addressee is doubtful or sceptical about the communicator’s proposition, and there is a requirement for affirmation by using one affirmatory device.
سليم: إنَّني مريض.
Salim: Verily I am ill.
- Heavy affirmation: The addressee is in denial about the communicator’s proposition: there is a requirement for more intense affirmation by using two or more affirmatory devices.
سليم: إنَّني لمريض.
Salim: Verily I am truly ill.
For rhetorical purposes, the affirmative may be used in a way outside this scheme of escalation.[2][3][4]
Examples
1) An open-minded or neutral addressee is addressed as if they are doubtful, with one affirmatory device
كريم: أنت جاهز للسفر؟
سليم: لا أريد أن أسافر اليوم. إنَّني مريض.
Karim: Are you ready to travel?
Salim: I do not want to travel today. Verily, I am ill.
2) An open-minded or neutral addressee is addresses as if they were in denial, with two or more affirmatory devices
كريم: أنت جاهز للسفر؟
سليم: لا أريد أن أسافر اليوم. إنَّني لمريض فلن أخرج من بيتي إلا عند الضرورة.
Karim: Are you ready to travel?
Salim: I do not want to travel today. Verily I am truly ill, and so I will not leave my house unless it was necessary.
3) An addressee in denial is addressed as if they were open-minded or neutral, without any affirmatory devices
كريم: كلنا جاهزون للسفر والسيارة جاهزة أيضاً. أين أنت؟ ننتظر إليك...
سليم: نصحني الطبيب بالبقاء بالبيت اليوم.
Karim: We are all ready to travel, and the car is ready too. Where are you? We are waiting for you.
Salim: The doctor advised me to stay home today.
References
- ↑ Ayman Amin Abd Al-Ghani, Al-Kāfī fī al-Balāgha: Al-Bayān, wa al-Badiʿ wa al-Maʿānī (Cairo: Dār al-Tawfīqiyya lil-Turāth, 2011), 374.
- ↑ Basil Hatim, Arabic Rhetoric: The Pragmatics of Deviation from Linguistic Norms, LINCOM Studies in Communication 04 (Munich: Lincom Europa, 2010), 136-146, ISBN 9783929075731.
- ↑ Hussein Abdul-Raof, Arabic Rhetoric: A Pragmatic Analysis (Oxford: Routledge, 2006), 108-114, ISBN 9780415386098. DOI: 10.4324/9780203965399
- ↑ Ayman Amin Abd Al-Ghani, Al-Kāfī fī al-Balāgha: Al-Bayān, wa al-Badiʿ wa al-Maʿānī (Cairo: Dār al-Tawfīqiyya lil-Turāth, 2011), 401-407.
Page history
- 2026-02-10 - Migration to Semantic Device Identifiers: Renamed from A-2: Affirmation to AFFIRM: Affirmation.
- 2025-11-20 - Page incorporated into the Arabic Rhetorical Device Taxonomy (v0.1.1).
- 2024-04-22 - Page created: Affirmation.
