A ação retórica de resenhar na comunidade jornalística: um estudo dos propósitos comunicativos e da avaliação

Abstract

Situated in the field of Text Linguistics, this study aims to discuss the overall relationship between genre,(specifically book reviews,) and community (specifically the journalistic one), throught the analysis of communicative purpose and appraisal categories. In order to achieve this objective, I used the theoretical background of Genre analysis theory (SWALES, 1990, 1992, 1993; BAKHTIN, 1990, 1997, 2002), Rhetorics (MILLER, 1994a, 1994b), the Appraisal system (MARTIN, 2003; MARTIN, WHITE, 2008), and of Pierre Bourdieu’s (1997, 2005) notion of field, related to the area of Sociology. On examining a total of 94 (ninety four) book reviews in Brazilian newspapers and magazines, 15 (fifteen) interviews with reviewers, and 06 (six) questionnaires applied to specialist readers, I first conducted quantitative and qualitative analyses, regarding the study of communicative purpose, and then a qualitative analysis, with regard to the study of appraisal. This theoretical and methodological development was carried out in three steps: preparing an outline for the notion of journalistic community, the identification of a rhetorical standard, heuristic in nature, and the description of a key for the appraisal patterns of the non-academic reviews. To produce the notion of the journalistic community I mobilized the specific conditions of the sphere of human activity, according to Bakhtin (1990, 1997, 2002), the centripetal and centrifugal forces of the rhetoric community, according to Miller (1994a, 1994b), the perceptible set of objectives and a selection of genres used in the discourse community, as suggested by Swales (1990, 1992, 1993), and the internal coertions and positions of the agents in the journalistic field, according to Bourdieu (1997, 2005). The study of the communicative purpose indicated the presence of specific purposes (“presenting the author” and “evaluating the author”), other than those usually conducted in academic book reviews. A set of specific rhetorical moves was also observed. The study of appraisal revealed a higher frequency of Appraisal of the book than of Judgement of the author, a low frequency of the category Affect, and manifestation of all the variables of the category Engagement. These results suggest that communicative purposes and appraisal in non-academic book reviews are affected by production conditions of the journalistic community.