A Transitivity Analysis of the Arab Revolutions Representation in Western Newspapers: the Washington Post, the Guardian and le Figaro as Case Study.

Aymane Edouihri,Yahya Yachouti Yahya Yachouti

doi:10.36892/ijlls.v2i3.344

Aymane Edouihri, Yahya Yachouti Yahya Yachouti

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.36892/ijlls.v2i3.344

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Abstract

The earthshaking event of the Arab revolutions profoundly impacted international relations and sparked heated discussions and analysis of East and West encounters´ legacy. Such sizable opportunity is creates an interesting momentum in revisiting western representation of the orient. Such representation traditionally feeds on colonial discourse´s binarisms, polarization and othering. Thus, this paper aims at examining western press discourse on the Arab Spring through transitivity analysis. The analysis examines the Washington Post, the Guradian and le Figaro´s articles written about the Arab revolutions. Enlightened by Systemic Functional Linguistics, transitivity analysis unveils the embedded constructs in the process types, goals and actors deployed by the newspapers´ articles writers.

Highlights

The analysis examines the Washington Post, the Guradian and le Figaros articles written about the Arab revolutions
Enlightened by Systemic Functional Linguistics, transitivity analysis unveils the embedded constructs in the process types, goals and actors deployed by the newspapersarticles writers
The Arab Spring, The Arab Awakening, The Arab Revolutions/uprisings are all terms used to describe the earthshaking upheavals sweeping the Arab world since the beginning of the second decade of the twenty-first century

Summary

Introduction

The Arab Spring, The Arab Awakening, The Arab Revolutions/uprisings are all terms used to describe the earthshaking upheavals sweeping the Arab world since the beginning of the second decade of the twenty-first century. First sparked by a street vendors selfimmolation in the Tunisian city of Sidi Bouzid, the fast-growing demonstrations against poverty, inflation and unequal distribution of wealth turned into determined calls for liberty, social justice and the downfall of the regime. The Arab Spring is seen as peoples endeavor to break the shackles of West supported/manipulated regimes in the region towards salvation from ignorance, poverty, inferiority and tyranny (Gelvin, 2015). It is a historical moment in the Arab world which created an unprecedented momentum for Arabs to revisit problematized issues as identity, nationalism and belongingness. Echoing calls of “liberty, dignity, social justice” from Tahrir Square in Egypt or

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