The Rhetoric of Religious 'Cults' ― Terms of Use and Abuse

Part of the process of brainwashing has to linguistic and textual, says Mooney (language and communication, Cardiff U., Wales), so if there is a connection between brainwashing and cults, there must be particular textual features in the literature of groups widely considered to be cults that do not appear in other genres. She found none in the three groups she investigates: the Church of Scientology, The Family (formerly The Children of God), and the Jehovah's Witnesses. Among her conclusions is that such terms as cult and abuse are widely overused and perhaps should be retired as pejoratives. Annotation c2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)