Abstract

Abstract This article traces the argumentum ad baculum, or appeal to fear, from Jonathan Edwards in the eighteenth century to the contemporary fundamentalist Christian practice of staging morality plays, often called Hell House. In his scare-for-salvation sermons, Edwards used descriptions of the reality of hell to invoke psychosomatic reactions of terror in his audience, and we see similar rhetorical tactics at work in evangelical hell houses. In a post-9/11 world where leaders, governments, and media can exert considerable power over individuals by frightening them into impulsive behavior, and considering the New Testament's message of love, this strategy seems questionable.

Journal
Rhetoric Review
Published
2007-01-01
DOI
10.1207/s15327981rr2601_3
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