THE STYLISTICS OF SILENCE: HOW PAUSES AND GAPS FUNCTION IN POLITICAL INTERVIEWS AND DEBATES

Аннотация

This article explores the stylistic functions of silence—particularly pauses and conversational gaps—in political interviews and debates. While silence is often perceived as a non-communicative void, this study argues that it holds substantial rhetorical value in political discourse. Drawing upon examples from televised British and American political programs, the paper analyzes silence through a stylistic and discourse-analytical lens. The study reveals how silence can serve functions such as evasion, emphasis, resistance, and emotional control, ultimately shaping power relations and public perception. This research contributes to the growing interest in multimodal and paralinguistic dimensions of language use in political settings. Keywords: stylistic silence, political discourse, pauses, rhetoric, political interviews, discourse analysis, power, media.