Functions of Quotations During President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi’s Address in the 2023 United Nations General Assembly: Perspectives from the Appraisal Model

This discourse analytic study examines how political figures quote and engage with prior voices. The data comprised the speech given by the Iranian President Seyyed EbrahimRaisi, Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, addressing the 2023 United Nations General AssemblyUnited Nationsgeneral assembly as part of the annual meeting. The primary goal of this investigation is to see how Iranian politicians use quotations as an engagement resource to acknowledge, distance from, or hold an undecided or neutral stance with respect to prior voices. The study provides insights into how quotations, as a type of heteroglossic backdrop of alternative viewpoints, are woven into the fabric of the politicians’ interpersonal style and rhetorical strategies. As the findings indicate, Raisi’s speech resembles a sermon with an evangelistic appeal, foregrounding theological, ethical, and moral beliefs that are supported by Self and Other quotations. The president deployed expansive engagement resources in referencing self and other, opening up the dialogic space to prior utterances. This was accomplished by Acknowledging and Entertaining alternative positions, including the Divine, allied-other, and opponent-other. Sharing prior voices in this type of speech establishes a persuasive tone while presenting self’s value position and challenging the credibility of the opponent-other in an effort to align with the intended audience.