Abstract

Political speeches play an important role in shaping how political events are interpreted and in constructing leadership legitimacy. Although rhetorical persuasion in political discourse has been widely examined, the linguistic mechanisms through which persuasion is realized remain underexplored, particularly in Arabic political contexts. This study investigates the role of interpersonal metadiscourse as a persuasive strategy in selected political speeches by Bashar Al-Assad. Using qualitative discourse analysis, the study draws on Hyland’s model of interpersonal metadiscourse and Aristotelian rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos. The findings show that both interactive and interactional markers contribute significantly to persuasion. Interactive markers, including transitions, frame markers, and evidentials, support the logical organization of arguments and strengthen logos. Interactional markers, such as attitude markers, engagement markers, self-mentions, boosters, and hedges, help construct credibility, emotional alignment, and audience involvement, thereby reinforcing ethos and pathos. The study contributes to political discourse research by demonstrating how interpersonal metadiscourse functions as a linguistic mechanism for constructing authority, legitimacy, and audience engagement in crisis-oriented political persuasion.

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