Corpus-based Syntactic Analysis of Selected Speeches of President Obama

Abstract

Abstract This paper examines the manipulative usage of some syntactic structures within selected speeches of the president of the United States, Barack Obama (1). For this purpose, it combines methods and analytical tools from Corpus Linguistics (CL) with Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) in general and van Dijk’s Socio Cognitive Approach (SCA) in particular. In addition, the study examines how the combination of CDA with CL strengthens the mechanisms of both procedures. The methods of CL, which employ computational tools, add a quantitative dimension to CDA/SCA. At the same time, CDA adds a qualitative dimension to CL. The results reveal that Obama uses discursive strategies that contribute to the formation and activation of intended mental models within the public mind. The results also show that president Obama utilizes more manipulative syntactic structures within his first presidential term than his second one. Moreover, the study depicts a change in the use of some of these syntactic strategies in Obama’s second presidential term. By using such manipulative tools, Obama indirectly influences people’s beliefs, knowledge, opinions and ideologies, consequently controlling their actions.