The rhetorical uses of definition: Reagan’s safety net for the truly needy

doi:10.1075/aic.7.19ch19

In:Political Argumentation in the United States: Historical and contemporary studies
David Zarefsky
[Argumentation in Context 7] 2014
► pp. 365–374

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Reagan’s safety net for the truly needy

The rhetorical uses of definition

Published online: 24 September 2014

https://doi.org/10.1075/aic.7.19ch19

Faced with the need top appeal simultaneously for continuity and change, Ronald Reagan dissociated the concept of need, producing the phrase “truly needy,” Successive redefinitions of this term and the related phrase “safety net” are examined. The authors trace the persuasive definitions whose connotative dimensions remain constant while their denotative meanings change in successive Administration messages. For the most part, Reagan was able to narrow the scope of the safety net without arousing open hostility to his moves.

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