Intertextuality as a Genre-Defining Feature of English-Language Political Media Discourse

Abstract

Inter-textual cultural competence has long been considered to be of utmost importance to interpreters and translators. Within the post-structuralist framework, every text contains references, implicit or explicit, to other texts. These references are known as inter-textual elements or vertical context elements. The accuracy of translation/interpretation rests entirely on the interpreter’s / translator’s ability to identify the inter-textual element and its function. Thus, a study of intertextuality is of high practical value. The present paper looks into the sources and functions of inter-textual elements found in contemporary English-language political media discourse. The analysis is based on full-text versions of the Economist issues (2017-2018). The infra-context studies and the vertical context theory serve as the theoretical foundations of the research. Methodologically, the paper is a result of critical discourse and content analysis. The results of the research demonstrate that as much as 40-50% of headlines, leads, and captions in a given issue of The Economist are inter-textual. The common sources of intertextuality, our analysis shows, are the Bible, Shakespeare, the US Declaration of Independence, the UN Charter, cultural stereotypes, movies, popular songs, advertisement, and commercial slogans. In conclusion, it can be said that the research has demonstrated a high degree of intertextuality of English-language political media discourse, which allows us to claim that intertextuality defines it as a genre.