Research Article
Person Deixis in 2019 UK General Election Campaign: Analysis on the Use of We and They in Jeremy Corbyn’s and Boris Johnson’s Rally Speeches
Abstract
Personal deixis is frequently employed and occasionally used discursively in political speeches. This article explores the use of the person deixes we and they in the 2019 rally speeches of Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson. Drawing on Huang’s (2014), Arroyo’s (2015), Vladimirou’s (2007), and Halliday’s (2004) taxonomies, the study investigates person deixes to understand their rhetorical roles. The study utilizes a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze a self-compiled corpus. The objectives of the study are as follows: to identify instances of personal deixis, specifically the pronouns we and they; to calculate their frequency; to categorize and analyze the identified instances; and to compare the rhetorical styles of the two former candidates. The results indicate that both candidates employ persuasive discourse. They opt for the exclusive we to emphasize their plans and objects and for the inclusive we to foster a sense of unity with the British people. Johnson favors the opponent they to refer to opponents, distinguishing his approach from Corbyn’s. The research contributes to the understanding of person deixis used discursively and rhetorical strategies employed in rally speeches.
References
- Arroyo, J. B. (2000). Mire usted Sr. Goıızâlez... Personal deixis in Spanish political-electoral debate. Journal of Pragmatics, 32(1), 1-27. google scholar
- Boris Johnson - 2019 Speech at Conservative Manifesto Launch. (2019, November 26). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.ukpol.co.uk/boris-johnson-2019-speech-at-conservative-manifesto-launch/ google scholar
- Boris Johnson - 2019 Speech Launching General Election. (2019, November 11). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.ukpol.co.uk/boris-johnson-2019-speech-launching-general-election/ google scholar
- Halliday, M.A.K. (2004). An Introduction to functional grammar. London: Arnold. google scholar
- Hamdaoui, M. (2015). The Persuasive Power of Person Deixis in Political Discourse: The Pronoun ‘We’ in Obama’s Speeches About the 2007-2009 Financial Crisis as an Example. The European Conference on Arts & Humanities 2015 Official Conference Proceedings. Tunisia: University of Sfax. google scholar
- Huang, Y. (2014). Pragmatics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. google scholar
- Ivanova, A. (2016). Deixis and its role in defining rhetorical space. Revista Signos, 49(92), 329-349. google scholar
- Jeremy Corbyn - 2019 Speech Launching General Election Campaign. (2019, November 11). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.ukpol.co.uk/jeremy-corbyn-2019-speech-launching-general-election-campaign/ google scholar
- Jeremy Corbyn’s speech at the Confederation of British Industry. (2019, November 18). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://labour.org.uk/press/jeremy-corbyns-speech-at-the-confederation-of-british-industry/ google scholar
- Levinson, S. C. (1983). Pragmatics. Cambridge: CUP. google scholar
- Lyons, J. (1977). Semantics. Cambridge: CUP. 637. google scholar
- Putri, N. A. & Kurniawan, E. (2015). Person deixis in USA presidential campaign speeches. English Review: Journal ofEnglish Education, 3(2), 190-200. google scholar
- READ IN FULL: Boris Johnson’s speech to the 2019 Conservative Party conference. (2019, October 2). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.politicshome.com/news/article/read-in-full-boris-johnsons-speech-to-the-2019-conservative-party-conference google scholar
- Van de Putte, T. (2016). European citizenship policy between building collectives and appealing to individuals: A study of person deixis. Bulletin VALS-ASLA, 104, 105-123. google scholar
- Van Dijk, T. A. (1997). What is political discourse analysis. Belgian Journal of Linguistics, 11(1), 11-52. google scholar
- Vladimirou, D. (2007). ‘I suggest that we need more research’ personal reference in linguistics journal articles. Lancaster University Postgraduate Conference in Linguistics and Language Teaching, 1, 139-157. google scholar
- Wilson, K. (2019, December 9). General Election 2019: Jeremy Corbyn’s speech to Bristol Labour supporters in full. [Web post]. Retrieved from www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/general-election-2019-jeremy-corbyn-3625405 google scholar
- Zupnik, Y. J. (1994). A pragmatic analysis of the use of person deixis in political discourse. Journal of Pragmatics, 21(4), 339-383. google scholar
Year 2023,
Issue: 40, 51 - 60, 29.12.2023
Abstract
References
- Arroyo, J. B. (2000). Mire usted Sr. Goıızâlez... Personal deixis in Spanish political-electoral debate. Journal of Pragmatics, 32(1), 1-27. google scholar
- Boris Johnson - 2019 Speech at Conservative Manifesto Launch. (2019, November 26). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.ukpol.co.uk/boris-johnson-2019-speech-at-conservative-manifesto-launch/ google scholar
- Boris Johnson - 2019 Speech Launching General Election. (2019, November 11). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.ukpol.co.uk/boris-johnson-2019-speech-launching-general-election/ google scholar
- Halliday, M.A.K. (2004). An Introduction to functional grammar. London: Arnold. google scholar
- Hamdaoui, M. (2015). The Persuasive Power of Person Deixis in Political Discourse: The Pronoun ‘We’ in Obama’s Speeches About the 2007-2009 Financial Crisis as an Example. The European Conference on Arts & Humanities 2015 Official Conference Proceedings. Tunisia: University of Sfax. google scholar
- Huang, Y. (2014). Pragmatics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. google scholar
- Ivanova, A. (2016). Deixis and its role in defining rhetorical space. Revista Signos, 49(92), 329-349. google scholar
- Jeremy Corbyn - 2019 Speech Launching General Election Campaign. (2019, November 11). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.ukpol.co.uk/jeremy-corbyn-2019-speech-launching-general-election-campaign/ google scholar
- Jeremy Corbyn’s speech at the Confederation of British Industry. (2019, November 18). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://labour.org.uk/press/jeremy-corbyns-speech-at-the-confederation-of-british-industry/ google scholar
- Levinson, S. C. (1983). Pragmatics. Cambridge: CUP. google scholar
- Lyons, J. (1977). Semantics. Cambridge: CUP. 637. google scholar
- Putri, N. A. & Kurniawan, E. (2015). Person deixis in USA presidential campaign speeches. English Review: Journal ofEnglish Education, 3(2), 190-200. google scholar
- READ IN FULL: Boris Johnson’s speech to the 2019 Conservative Party conference. (2019, October 2). [Web Post]. Retrieved from https://www.politicshome.com/news/article/read-in-full-boris-johnsons-speech-to-the-2019-conservative-party-conference google scholar
- Van de Putte, T. (2016). European citizenship policy between building collectives and appealing to individuals: A study of person deixis. Bulletin VALS-ASLA, 104, 105-123. google scholar
- Van Dijk, T. A. (1997). What is political discourse analysis. Belgian Journal of Linguistics, 11(1), 11-52. google scholar
- Vladimirou, D. (2007). ‘I suggest that we need more research’ personal reference in linguistics journal articles. Lancaster University Postgraduate Conference in Linguistics and Language Teaching, 1, 139-157. google scholar
- Wilson, K. (2019, December 9). General Election 2019: Jeremy Corbyn’s speech to Bristol Labour supporters in full. [Web post]. Retrieved from www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/general-election-2019-jeremy-corbyn-3625405 google scholar
- Zupnik, Y. J. (1994). A pragmatic analysis of the use of person deixis in political discourse. Journal of Pragmatics, 21(4), 339-383. google scholar
There are 18 citations in total.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Linguistics (Other) |
| Journal Section | Research Articles |
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | December 29, 2023 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2023 Issue: 40 |
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