Language and Politics
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Transcript of Language and Politics
The Language of
Politics
Adrien Beard
Making speeches
(the rhetoric of persuasion)
List of the three:
• It is a three-part list used in political speech, speech acts or casual conversations that results attractive to the speaker and listener because it is embedded in certain cultures as giving a sense of unity and completeness.
• “Friends, comrades and fellow South Africans”
• “Government of the people, by the people, for the people”
• “Education, education, education”.
Contrastive pairs:
• Two parts which are in some ways in
opposition.
• “One small step for man; one giant leap for
mankind.”
• “I stand before you not as a prophet but as
a humble servant of you, the people… We
have waited too long for our feedom. We
can no longer wait.” (Mandela)
- Repetition:
• can be lexical, semantic or phonological.
“Where there is discord, may we bring
harmony.
Where there is error, may we bring truth.
Where there is doubt, may we bring faith.
Where there is despair, may we bring hope.”
(Margaret Thatcher, when elected for the
first time, 1979
Use of pronouns:
• There are 5 ways politicians can introduce a measure:
• 1) I,
• 2) We
• 3) referring to their position (“The chancellor must…”)
• 4) no agentive pronoun (use of passive),
• 5) use of metonymy (“This budget will help…”).
Winning elections: slogans
• negative campaigning or positive methods?
• Television as the most important political
battleground nowadays
• use of logos or slogans which briefly and
memorably suggests something. Part of the
political parties campaigns and persuasive
package
• they appear on posters, party broadcasts and
wherever the parties are advertising themselves.
Slogans may contain or involve:
• commands: “Vote Green”, “Invest in your future”, etc.
• reference to place: “Win the best for Scotland”, “Because Britain deserves better”.
• reference to time directly or by implication: “The future is ours”, “Enough is enough”
• Ambiguity of pronouns and playing with meaning (“Who wants a Clegg/leg?”, “It’s up to you”, “Don´t throw it away”, “Yes, we can!)”)
• Noun-phrases: “New hope”,
• Ellipsis: omission of words, clauses, statements deliberately. “New life for Britain”.
• Unreferenced comparatives: “Britain deserves better”
Winning elections- POSTERS
• Characteristics: brief,
eye-catching,
various colours
easy to read
• Placed on advertising billboards
• Use of passive forms (allows the agent to remain unidentified)
• Use of will or going to
(future or suggestion that something
definite is going to happen)
Including significant visual material,
not only the slogan or logo.
Usually representations of leading
political figures, especially the
party leaders themselves in an
impressive light
Party leader:
relaxed, smiling, looking upwards to
a better future, with his sleeves
rolled up (meaning that he´s
working), wearing suitable clothes
for high office, looking confident
and successful.
• Political posters show their
opponents in a ridiculous fashion.
Repetitions