Political linguistics in the modern science of language

Shingareva M.Yu. – Candidate of philological science, associate professor

Mamekova S.K. - candidate for a master's degree

AIU. Shymkent

 

Political linguistics as modern science of language is characterized by multidiscipline (different science methodologies usage), anthropocentrism (a person, lingual identity is a base point for research of lingual conditions) and interrelation with political science, philosophy (axiology), sociology, culturology, psychology, knowledge engineering. Formation of political linguistics as independent department of science of language has begun in the 20 th century but its impetuous development in the end of last century.

E.V. Bakumova, A.N.Baranov, E.V.Budayev, V.I.Karasik, O.L.Mikhaleva, T.A.Svetonosova, A.P.Chudinov, E.I.Sheygal, A.A.Filinsky, T.A.van Dake, N.Ferklow, R.Vodak and etc. are known with their researches in political linguistics department.

Political linguistics is an independent scientific discipline possessed object and subject of research, interdisciplinary connections, directions of research.

The dominant purpose of political linguistics is a study of various connections between language, thinking, communication, entities of political activities and political condition of society and also strategies and tactics of political activities [Chudinov, 2007, p.7].

Research of works was highlight close links with linguistics directions such as axiological linguistics, pragmalinguistics, psycholinguistics, cognitive linguistics, sociological linguistics, functional linguistics, rhetoric, text linguistics in a political linguistics direction.

The most important directions of political linguistics are researches of shared problems of political communication, study of political media-discourse and categories of political discourse, separate political concepts, research of communicative strategies, tactics, procedures of political discourse, political discourse’s role structure study.

The complement of comprehensive study has been political discourse by the way of: 1) primary needs of linguistic theory adverted to real facts of language system functioning; 2) designation of political discourse’s analysis methods necessity for showing up different tendencies in socio-political consciousness sphere; 3) the problems of political science in a political thinking study, its connection with political behavior. [Filinsky, 2002, p.34]

Famous linguist A.N.Baranov calls the subject of political linguistics as a political discourse, which is a commonality of discourse practices identified participants of political discourse or formed concrete theme of political communication [Baranov, 2001, p.261]

Another magisterial researcher in a political communication field A.P.Chudinov calls more extensional term as a subject of political linguistics – political communication representing speech, focused on propaganda of some or other ideas, emotional impact on citizens of the country and motivate them to definite policy decisions.

Political communication in its turn has own research subjects: political language, political discourse and political narrative [Chudinov, 2007, p.6]

Political language is defined as the special semiotic system being used in a political communication with the aim-formulation of social consensus, political decisions making and foundation in society amid of various points of view [Baranov, Kazakevich, 1991, p.6]

There are two approaches of political discourse research: narrow and extended. A.N.Baranov and E.G.Kazakevich under political discourse term mean “totality of all speech acts in political discussions use and rules of public politics were lightened by traditions and proved by time.”[A.N.Baranov and E.G.Kazakevich, 1991, p.6]. The extended approach was conceived by E.I.Sheygal including “not only institutional but also non-intrusive forms of communications in which one of three constituents belongs to: subject, addressee or content of message” [E.I.Sheygal, 2004, p.287]

Political narrative is whole of political texts by A.P.Chudinov, concentrating around definite political event [Chudinov, 2007, p.79]

A lot of research works about suggestiveness and complexity of the “discourse” term were written. Developing of discourse concepts does not alone in linguistics but in political science, philosophy, psychology, history, literary studies and etc.

Since research paradigm in study of language has been changed to the anthropo-centralism the term “text” has been inadequate for imaging of all variety constituent of event’s communicative practice.

Native and foreign linguists define the “texts” in different ways but all don’t concur that the “discourse” is more volume term than “text”. For example, I.P.Susov defines “discourse” as “connected sequences of speech acts. Delivered comment from speaker to listener (or propositional sequences) becomes the text when it is fixed on writing (or using recorder).In this way the text is as “informative track” of accomplished discourse” [Susov, 2007, p.40]

T.van Dake delimits exactly the “text” and “discourse” conceptions, defining “discourse” as articulated topical text and “text” as abstract grammatical structure of articulated speech [Dake, 1998]

The most widespread dichotomies in linguistics approaches to text’s and discourse’s differentiations are presented in a E.I.Sheygal’s monography “Significs of political discourse” [Sheygal, 2004, p.10-12]:

1. Category of discourse defines to linguo-social sphere when the text to linguistic (N.D.Arutyunova, A.K.Mikhalskaya, E.Benvenist, G. Brown, G. Cook, G. Kress, G. Yule) In this approach the text is regarded as verbal image (“oral record”) of communicative event when the discourse as “the text in eventive aspect”, “the speech wrapped up in a life”, “function of the language in an alive relationship” [Benvenist, 1974, p.296]. Taken as a whole approach is expressed by the formula “discourse = text + context (linguistic and extralinguistic)”.

2. Discourse and text are contradistinguished as a process and result (O.V.Alexandrova, M.K.Bisimaliyeva, M.Ya.Dymarskiy, E.S.Kubryakova, G.Brown, G.Kress, G.Yule). In the given approach the discourse is functional, processual event, which connect with real speech production and the text is considered as a product of speech production, which has the definite completed and fixed form.

3. The discourse and the text are opposed in actuality and virtuality (V.Ya.Dymarsky, V.P.Koneckaya, T.A.van Dake, D.Schiffrin). Supporters of this approach are considered the discourse as real speech event, current speech activity in the given sphere, connected text created in the text. The text hasn’t definite connection with real time but presents as abstractive mental construct which realizes in discourse.

4. Opposition “oral<->written” (V.V.Bogdanov, Z.Turayeva, M.Coulthard, M.Hoey). In the given approach the discourse associates only with sounding oral speech but the text with written form. We are in sympathy with E.I.Sheygal in a view that this approach is limited and successful continuation the given approach gets by V.V.Bogdanov who thinks that the terms “speech” and “text” are hyponyms with regard to “discourse” hyponym. The speech is spontaneous, non-normative, elliptical sound substance characterized with interlocutory while the text prepared, normative, fully-fledged, monologic or interlocutory, is distinguished from the speech by graphical representation of language material [Bogdanov, 1993]. Discourse in this way includs all parameters relating to the speech and the text that correlates with discourse’s concept is presented by E.I.Sheygal [Sheygal, 2004, p.10-12]

Professor U.A.Dubrovsky considers four avowed parameters of the text: integrity, coherence, visibility and irreducibility. Integrity is understood as unity of text’s architectonics interosculant it in the form of story. Coherence presupposes impossibility of text components’ interchange. Mostly visibility and irreducibility are considered in connection with values of literary texts including exposition, beginning of the action, the development of the action, culmination, outcome, conclusion and epilogue [Dubrovsky, 2009, p.21]. Discourse doesn’t restrict to so in gathering parameters and is more volumetric and multilevel term.

The ratio of the terms "discourse", "text", "speech" is built as follows: the text and the speech are result of such difficult communicative phenomenon as a discourse.

Such types of a discourse as a scientific, pedagogical, religious, medical, legal, art, poetic, political discourse are investigated in modern linguistics.

A.A. Filinsky defines "a political discourse" as speech activity of political subjects within their institutional communication [Filinsky, 2002, page 29].

The main function of a political discourse as E.I. Sheygal and A.P. Chudinov consider, is fight for the political power by using of communicative activity, that is the political discourse is used as the tool of the political power [Chudinov, 2007; Sheygal, 2004].

1.                Baranov A.N., Kazakevich E.G. Parlamentskie debaty: traditzii i inovatzii [Parliamentary debates: traditions and novations] / A.N.Baranov, E.G.Kazakevich – M: Znanie-Knowladge, 1991. – p.42.

2.                Baranov A.N. Vvedenie v prikladnuyu lingvistiku: Uchebnoe posobie [Introduction to applied linguistics] Training manual / A.N. Baranov. – M: Editorial-Editorial, 2001. – p.360

3.                Benvenist E. Obsh’aya lingvistika. Per.s frantz. [General linguistics]. Transl. from French/ E.Benfist. – M: Progress-Progress, 1974. – p.447

4.                Bogdanov V.V. Tekst I tekstovoe obsh’enie [The text and text intercourse] / V.V.Bogdanov. – St. Petersburg: Izdatel’stvo sankt-Peterburgskogo universiteta - publishing office of St. Petersburg’s Un-ty, 1993. – p.67

5.                Dubovskyi Yu.A. O soderzhatel’nych svoistvach teksta kak yedinitzi analiza [About informative properties of the text as the unit of analysis] // Novie idei v lingvistike XXI veka. Materiali I Mezhdunarodnoi nauchnoi konferentzii, posvyatshenoi pam’ati professora V.A.Chom’akova. Chast’ I [The new ideas in linguistic of the XXI st century]. – Pyatigorsk: PSLU, 2009. – p.21-31

6.                Susov I.P. Vvedenie v Yazikoznanie: uchebnik dl’a studentov lingvisticheskich ifilologicheskich special’nostei [Introduction to the science of language] / I.P.Susov. – M: Vostok-Zapad – West-East, 2007. – p.378

7.                Filinskii A.A. Kriticheskii analiz politicheskogo diskursa predvybornych kompanii 1999-2000gg.:dis. kand.filol.nauk [Political discourse’s critical analysis of electioneering] / A.A.Filinsky. – Tver’ – Twer, 2002. – p.163

8.                Chudinov A.P. Politicheskaya lingvistica: uchebnoe posobie [Political linguistics] training manual / A.P.Chudinov. – 2-e izd., ispr. – M: Flinta: Nauka – Science, 2007. – p.256

9.                Sheygal E.I., Bakumova E.V. Ideologema as a means of politician’s identification. Materiali Vserosiiskoi nauchnoi konferentzii (Penza, 15-19 maya 2001goda) Ideologema kak sredstvo identifikatzii politika Yazik I mishlenie: [Psychological and linguistic aspects] Institute of psychology and Study of language Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Penza, 2001 – p.227-230

10.           Dake T.A. van Discourse Semantics and Ideology [Semantika diskursa I ideologii] Discourse and Society. Vol.6, No.2, 1995. - p. 243-285