Heretics – A Cognitive and Rhetorical Analysis of the Concept of Strength in G. K. Chesterton's essay Mr. Bernard Shaw

Abstract

In this thesis I give a cognitive and rhetorical analysis of G. K. Chesterton's essay Mr. Bernard Shaw. I demonstrate that the concept of strength is essential to understand the essay's polemic role. With blending theory and rhetoric, I analyse how Chesterton constructs meanings contained in the concept of strength, how he contrasts orthodox and heretical strength and how he attempts to persuade his reader. I argue that Chesterton attempts to subvert Shaw's heretical philosophy, employing perspectives from discourse theory to unpack the concept of strength by identifying their chains of equivalence, thus shedding light on the ideological struggle that takes place within the text. I clarify the message and intention behind Chesterton's essay and discuss the role of his ethos inside and outside the text and how it effects Chesterton's project of reviving Christian philosophy.