Managing Disagreement: Rhetorical Analysis Within a Dialectical Framework

In this paper it is argued that rhetorical insight can be used to deepen a dialectical analysis of argumentative discourse and to justify the dialectical reconstructions. After a discussion of the dialectical and rhetorical aspects of argumentative confrontation, an explanation is given of the rhetorical rationales for defining the disagreement space. Then, some strategic moves are identified in confrontation episodes in the public discussion on fox hunting in Great Britain that are instrumental for this purpose.