Full Description
The Language of Harassment: Pragmatic Perspectives on Language as Evidence addresses harassment head-on by conducting a thorough linguistic analysis of this pervasive social phenomenon. Utilizing a dearth of linguistic research on this topic, this book investigates the strategic language used by harassers to convey their ill intentions and inflict harm upon their victims. The linguistic analysis focuses on how harassment is constructed through verbal and physical interactions between the perpetrator or group of perpetrators and the victim at a discourse level. The author revisits several court cases tried in the US and Europe to show the phenomenal difficulties victims face to support their claims with evidence. This volume applies pragmatic linguistic theories to shed light on the defining elements of harassment, which include repetitive hostile and unethical communication, ill intentions, power imbalances, and harm inflicted upon the victim. In addition, the author illustrates the linguistic analysis through live cases of workplace mobbing, school bullying, sexual harassment, psychological harassment, stalking, and sexting.
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Approaches to Harassment
Chapter 1: Harassment as a Legal Problem
Chapter 2: The Defining Elements of Harassment
Chapter 3: Repeated Acts of Hostile and Unethical Communication
Chapter 4: Ill Intentions
Chapter 5: Power Imbalance and Harm Inflicted upon the Target
Conclusions
References
Index
About the Author
