Argumentative Imbalance in “La muerte tiene permiso” by Edmundo Valadés

Abstract

In this article, we analyze the argumentative procedures in the short story “La muerte tiene permiso”, by Edmundo Valadés from a pragma-dialectical perspective (Van Eemeren & Grootendorst, 1992, 2012). Our objective is to demonstrate that the narrative structure can be read as a confrontational system of argumentative maneuvers between groups interacting from positions of unequal power. As a key contribution, we show that the different stages of argumentation in the story (opening, turn-taking, reasoning, and conclusion) materialize textually as a system of local appearances; while in reality, they are part of broader and more critical ideological aspects of Mexico’s sociocultural life. A significant implication of this study is the proposal that the argumentative speech act of “asking for permission” to kill can be interpreted as an allegory of epistemic resistance by rural communities against hegemonic colonial powers.