US political discourse:metaphors of war and war of metaphors

Author(s):  A.M. Amatov, Dr., Prof., Belgorod National Research University, Belgorod, Russia, amatov@bsu.edu.ru

E.V. Bondarenko, Dr., Prof., Belgorod National Research University,, Belgorod, Russia

E.V. Pupynina, candidate of Sciences, associate Professor, Belgorod National Research University,, Belgorod, Russia

Issue:  Volume 38, № 1

Rubric:  Linguistics

Annotation:  One of the main tasks of political communication is to create and promote the image of a politician. The process is aimed at creating both a positive image that is attractive to society, which is a key factor of influencing mass consciousness and pursuing their goals, as well as the negative one used by a politician to discredit their opponents in a tough competition of modern policies. In the modern information society, the main function of the mass media – Informative – changes its nature and is transformed into a manipulative function. One of the tools of manipulating the audience is a metaphor. The active use of metaphors in political discourse is due to its ability to influence each of the stages of solving problems in the political sphere: understanding the problem situation, finding options for solving it, evaluating alternatives, and choosing options. One of the types of political metaphor that occupies a central place in the current political discourse of the US is military metaphor. The paper deals with military metaphors functioning in political discourse. Their role in the global communicative strategy, “Them and Us” is revealed, along with the ensuing tactics.

Keywords:  political discourse, military metaphor, polarization, communicative strategy

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