Pragmatic Strategies in Framing Identity through Music Discourse: A Study of Gospel Music as a Pedagogical Tool

Abstract Music plays a crucial role in shaping and expressing identity, particularly in religious and educational settings. This study investigates the pragmatic strategies employed in framing identity through gospel music discourse, with a focus on its pedagogical significance. Using Sperber and Wilson’s Relevance Theory (1986) as an analytical tool, the study explores how gospel music communicates implicit and explicit meanings that contribute to identity construction and faith-based learning. Data are drawn from song lyrics, worship performances, choir rehearsals, and interviews with gospel music educators and performers. The analysis reveals that gospel music employs ostensive-inferential communication, implicatures, and contextual assumptions to reinforce religious identity and group belonging. The study also identifies how gospel music facilitates cognitive effects such as emotional resonance, moral instruction, and social cohesion through optimized relevance. Additionally, the pedagogical function of gospel music is examined, highlighting its role in language acquisition, memorization, and cultural transmission. The findings contribute to both pragmatic and discourse studies by demonstrating how gospel music serves as a linguistically rich medium for identity formation and pedagogical engagement. The study concludes that Relevance Theory provides a robust framework for understanding the inferential processes and cognitive effects that make gospel music a powerful tool for discourse and education.