Encapsulating language ideologies in figurative language: a critical discourse analysis of French presidents’ speeches to Africa.
Résumé
This study investigates the interaction between figuration and language ideologies in political discourse. The analysis relies on the cognitive approach to conceptual metaphor/metonymy and critical discourse studies (Lakoff and Johnson 1980, Chilton 2004, van Dijk 2009, among others). As Lakoff and Johnson (2003: 39) have shown, metaphoric and metonymic concepts are grounded in our experience and they structure our thoughts, language, attitudes and actions. Analyzing the relation between language, ideology and metaphor, Underhill (2011: 174) argues that “language itself is invariably represented in metaphors”, and demonstrates how the representations of the French language are historically metaphorical.
The present study examines how metaphor and metonymy interact with ideologies in French presidents’ speeches to Africa. It also analyzes the rhetorical strategies and motivations behind the encapsulation of ideologies within figurative language. Our hypothesis is that metaphor and metonymy are not only rhetorical devices to persuade people, but they are also opaque ways to mitigate biased and sensitive ideologies. In the corpus, the French language and the Francophonie are frequently represented figuratively to encapsulate ideas and worldviews that were explicitly expressed in the colonial period but are nowadays considered as biased discourses. The underlying discursive objective is to perpetuate a historical representation of French and ultimately maintain its symbolic power and prestige in former colonies. Thus, instead of openly insisting on the so-called beauty, clarity and perfection of the French language, postcolonial French presidents rather use other subtle conceptual representations. For instance, President Macron conceptualizes French/Francophonie as a “living being” and “cement” uniting France and former colonies, while President Hollande rhetorically equates “speaking French” to “inspiring people” and “speaking the language of freedom and dignity”.
References
Chilton, P. (2004). Analysing Political Discourse: Theory and Practice. London: Routledge.
Chilton, P. and C. Schäffner (Eds) (2002). Politics as Text and Talk: Analytic Approaches to Political Discourse. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Lakoff, G. and M. Johnson. (2003 [1980]). Metaphors We Live by. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Underhill, J. (2011). Creating Worldviews: Metaphor, Ideology and Language. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Van Dijk, T. (2009). Critical Discourse Studies: a sociocognitive approach. In Ruth Wodak & M. Meyer (Eds). Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis. Second edition, pp. 62-86. London: Sage.