Low-level Argumentative Text Analysis and Teaching Methods Based on Rhetorical Structure Theory

Abstract For this study, I completed a comprehensive review of punishment clauses in the Korean Legal Code from 1985 to 2016. Using a web crawler and text analysis, I gathered data on the laws and then identified the content of the penal sentence in each clause. By investigating the data, I was able to quantify and assess changes over time in: (1) the number of punishment clauses; (2) the severity of sentences; and (3) the balance between imprisonment and fines. In order to examine the causes of these changes, I separated the data into different sentence levels and sectors. I found that low-level punishment clauses had grown quickly, and some of the sectors responsible for the change included civil engineering and sex offenses. This comprehensive review of the penal sentences revealed issues of concern related to overcriminalization, overpenalization, and an imbalance of punishment level in the Korean Legal Code.

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Text as tautology: an exploration in inference, transitivity, and logical compression

Text & Talk - An Interdisciplinary Journal of Language Discourse Communication Studies ◽

10.1515/text-2020-0230 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Andrew Potter

Keyword(s):

Knowledge Representation ◽

Propositional Logic ◽

Research Literature ◽

Transitive Inference ◽

Structure Theory ◽

Rhetorical Structure ◽

Logical Models ◽

Logical Operations ◽

Selection Of

Abstract Rhetorical structure theory (RST) and relational propositions have been shown useful in analyzing texts as expressions in propositional logic. Because these expressions are systematically derived, they may be expected to model discursive reasoning as articulated in the text. If this is the case, it would follow that logical operations performed on the expressions would be reflected in the texts. In this paper the logic of relational propositions is used to demonstrate the applicability of transitive inference to discourse. Starting with a selection of RST analyses from the research literature, analyses of the logic of relational propositions are performed to identify their corresponding logical expressions and within each expression to identify the inference path implicit within the text. By eliminating intermediary relational propositions, transitivity is then used to progressively compress the expression. The resulting compressions are applied to the corresponding texts and their compressed RST analyses. The application of transitive inference to logical expressions results in abridged texts that are intuitively coherent and logically compatible with their originals. This indicates an underlying isomorphism between the inferential structure of logical expressions and discursive coherence, and it confirms that these expressions function as logical models of the text. Potential areas for application include knowledge representation, logic and argumentation, and RST validation.

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