Recently, when different scientific fields come together, very promising disciplines have arisen. One of them is political linguistics. For Russia, this is a new direction. Consider its features.
General information
The occurrence of such new direction as political linguistics due to rising public interest inmechanisms and conditions of political communications. This discipline appeared at the intersection of political science and linguistics. At the same time, it uses tools and methods of social psychology, ethnology, sociology and other humanities.
With political linguistics closely related to other areas of linguistics. Among them are functional stylistics, and sociolinguistics, modern and classical rhetoric, cognitive linguistics, etc.
Character traits
Political linguistics as a scientific discipline such signs as:
- Multidisciplinarity, i.e. the use of methodologies of different sciences.
- Anthropocentrism, in which language is studied through the study of personality.
- Expansionism, i.e. the tendency to expand the sphere of linguistics.
- Functionalism, that is, the study of language in its direct application.
- Explanting nature, which implies the desire of researchers not only to describe, but also to explain certain facts.
Subject of study
It is political communication.It is a speech activity aimed at promoting some ideas related to the emotional impact on the population in order to encourage them to commit political actions. Communication is focused on the development of social harmony, the justification of public management decisions in the context of a multiplicity of opinions.
Any subject reading newspapers, listening to the radioor watching TV, is the addressee of such speech activity. Participation in elections is participation in the political life of the state. It takes place under the influence of subjects of communication. Therefore, to political linguistics It is necessary to include not only the direct transfer of information, but also all the phenomena associated with its perception, as well as the assessment of reality in the course of political communication.
Objectives
The key task of political communicationis a power struggle through the use of speech activity. It is designed to influence (indirect or direct) the distribution of managerial powers and their use. This is achieved through elections, the formation of public opinion, appointment, etc.
Main purpose political linguistics is the study of diverse interactionsbetween thinking, language, communication, subjects of speech activity, the political state of society. These relationships form the conditions for the development of tactics and strategies for the struggle for power.
Политическая коммуникация способна оказывать influence on the distribution of managerial functions and the implementation of powers due to the fact that it is used as a means of influencing the minds of people who make political decisions. These include citizens and officials, and deputies.
When did science form?
Political linguistics возникла еще в древности.Roman and Greek thinkers actively studied issues of political eloquence. However, after the emergence of feudal monarchies, which replaced the ancient democracies, research was interrupted for a long time.
Political communication is of interest.for democratic societies. Accordingly, scientists again turned to the study of political communication after the change of government in the North American and Western European countries.
Antique time
Before recognition political linguistics as a separate direction in science, all publications on political communication were perceived as a type of rhetorical or stylistic analysis.
Such publications are primarily endowed.praising or critical character. In the first case, readers were offered a "recipe" for achieving success in speeches or other public speaking activities. In the publications of the second type, attention was mainly paid to a detailed description of all the merits of the speech activity of a particular politician. In these works, the unscrupulous tricks of the opponents, their tongue-tiedness, speech negligence, and lack of education "were exposed".
First half of the 20th century
Starting point in becoming overseaspolitical linguistics of the XX century became the First World War. In the new conditions, the relevance of studying political speech activity and its interrelation with social processes became more and more obvious.
After the propaganda standoff severalcountries knowledge of the tools and mechanisms of manipulation of public opinion has acquired a special humanitarian and scientific value. In this regard, it is quite logical that after the war, researchers of the language began to focus on ways of creating public opinion, the effectiveness of military propaganda and political agitation.
The most significant works of the time shouldcount the works of W. Lippmann, G. Lasswell, P. Lazarsfeld. The first one, in particular, used content analysis to study public perceptions about the political situation in the world. In 1920, Lippman published a study of the New York Times texts on the events of 1917 in Russia. The author pointed out that the average American cannot form an objective opinion on the events taking place in the world, since he is influenced by the anti-Bolshevik bias of the texts.
Лазарсфельд использовал контент-анализ для studying the behavior of voters depending on election propaganda in the media. In particular, an experiment was conducted, the purpose of which was to establish the degree of effectiveness of political texts on citizens. Of the 600 people, just over 50 changed their preferences regarding the presidential candidate. Even fewer respondents changed their choice under the direct influence of radio programs, newspapers and magazines. The results of the experiment forced researchers to doubt the situation of the total impact of the media on the electorate.
Political Discourse in Linguistics
Lasswell used content analysis to study the language of political science. With this method, the scientist demonstrated the link between the style of the language and the existing political regime.
По мнению автора, дискурс (речевая деятельность) Democratic politicians and the voices of the voters with whom they interact are close to each other. At the same time, undemocratic currents strive for superiority, trying to distance themselves from ordinary citizens. This inevitably manifests itself in the stylistic features of political communication.
60s-80s XX century
At this stage, foreign researchersfocused on analyzing the communicative practices of Western democracies. As studies have shown, even in conditions of relative freedom, manipulation of citizens' consciousness still takes place. However, it is expressed more sophisticated.
In the new political conditions, the methods of linguistic influence have changed. Nevertheless, politics always involves a struggle for power. The winner will be the one who owns the consciousness of the electorate.
К примеру, опытный политический деятель не будет call for less help for poor people. He will call exclusively for tax cuts. However, it is known due to which benefits are traditionally formed for the needy. An experienced politician will call for the struggle for social justice, equalizing the situation of the rich and the poor. However, not every voter will be able to understand that this appeal contains a proposal to raise taxes, which will have to be paid not only to millionaires.
Particularly widespread in that period werestudies of practice and theory of argumentation, political vocabulary, metaphors, symbols. Of particular interest to scholars were questions related to the functioning of the language in a pre-election race, in the framework of presidential and parliamentary debates.
The end of the XX-beginning of the XXI centuries.
The current stage of development of political linguistics is characterized by a number of features.
First, there is a globalization of science.If in the early stages of the study were carried out mainly in European or North American countries, in recent years, publications on the topic of political communication appear in the countries of Latin America, Africa, and Asia. After the end of the Cold War, Russian political linguistics also developed.
Recently vector of researchmoves to the problems of a multipolar world. The field of study of science is expanding due to the inclusion of new areas of interaction of language, society and government: the discourse of terrorism, the new order in the world, social tolerance, political correctness, etc.
Today political linguistics is increasinglybecomes isolated, becomes an independent discipline. On issues of communication, interaction between society and government, various conferences are held, scientific collections are published in large numbers.
