The style of al-Ajwibah al-Muskitah in Arabic Language and Rhetoric: The example of Ibn Abī 'Awn

Al-ījāz, which is the essence of the word, has been accepted as equivalent to eloquence in the Arabic language, and together with al-iʿjāz, it has been one of the most fundamental features that differentiate Arabic from other languages. One of the means of expression in which both al-ījāz and al-iʿjāz come to the fore is the style of al-ajwibah al-muskitah (silencing answers) which is the subject of our study. This style is a very valuable way of expression both in terms of the power of persuasion and silence it gains with the rhetorical arts it contains and the material and moral values it brings to people in social life. This thesis is limited to prosaic literature due to the wide variety of literary genres in which it is used and examples are included. In our study, we have tried to create a concept chronology by reviewing the relevant literature on this style. In this context, firstly, examples of use in the Qurʾān and hadīths, which are the basic sources of Islam, were mentioned. Afterwards, this style was analysed according to its usage areas and rhetorical arts in al-ajwibah al-muskitah belonging to the Baghdad literary figure and writer Ibn Abī 'Awn. This work by Ibn Abī 'Awn is the oldest extant work in which anecdotes about this style are brought together. This work of Ibn Abī 'Awn mediates the transfer of many valuable materials belonging to Arabic, Persian and Greek culture to the present day and constitutes a unique corpus with one thousand three hundred and ninety-four examples. In addition, this work was a source for the literary writers who came after Ibn Abī 'Awn. Despite this important feature, the lack of a comprehensive academic study on this work has led us to conduct this research. This work contains very important information about the political and social life of the Umayyad and Abbasid periods, especially the Jāhiliyya period, and touches upon many religious and ethical principles.