政治演讲文体

Stylistic features of political speech

Abstract:

Different literary forms have different stylistic features. As a special style, the political speech is widely used in various fields of the society with its special features. Next, I am going to talk about its stylistic features at lexical level, syntactical level and figures of speech by giving examples of Gettysburg Address delivered by Abraham Lincoln.

Key words:stylistic features political speech

Political speech is a very important form of public speech. It refers to a kind of speech that is used to clarify the speaker’s position, viewpoint and some policies in both domestic and foreign affairs in order to realize some certain political objectives. Owing to its magnificent importance in political life, it is extensively used in different fields of the society. And it has formed its special stylistic features. For example, the language is formal and solemn. With the use of different figures of speech, the whole speech is vivid and lively. So it is essential to know something about the stylistic features of political speeches.

Stylistic features at lexical level

Word is a unit of language that represents a concept which can be expressively communicated with meaning. It is smaller than a sentence and also the basic cell to form a speech. Political speech is used to achieve some political objectives, so the words used in it are always complicated, accurate, and formal. In Gettysburg Address, there are “consecrate”, “hallow”, “detract”“perish” etc, which make the speech formal and serious.

Besides, political speech is always inspiring and persuasive. Thus, the words used must have such powers. In Gettysburg Address, President Lincoln does not use second-person pronouns. Instead, he uses many first-person pronouns which are in their plural forms, such as “our fathers”, “we are engaged in…”“We are met…”“It is for us the living…”“It is rather for us…” The uses of “WE” and “US” here show that the speaker seems to stand with the audiences on the same side. It will narrow down the gap between them and make the speech more intimate and more acceptable.

What is more, the uses of modal verbs are also noticeable. A modal verb is a type of auxiliary verb that is used to indicate modality—that is likelihood, ability, permission, and obligation. In Gettysburg Address, six modal verbs are used—can, might, should, cannot, will and shall. In the sentence “it is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this”, “should”indicate people’s obligation to finish the work the martyrs have left. In the sentence “but, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate—we cannot not consecrate—we cannot hallow—this ground”, three “cannot” are used. It stresses the martyrs’ contribution to the country is too great to be surpassed. And in the

last sentence “…shall not perish from …”“shall”here shows Lincoln’s great determination to build a better country and will not let the soldiers die in vain. In a word, modal verbs play an important role in emphasizing.

Stylistic features at syntactical level

From the perspective of sentence structure, political speeches are inclined to use long sentences to express complicated relations. In return, it can make the speech more serious and formal. However, short sentences are also necessary. Only when long and short sentences are combined properly, can a speech play a biggest role. In Gettysburg Address, we can see variation of structure and length. The longest sentence has 83 words while the shortest only has 10 words. By doing this, President Lincoln gives prominence to the key points and makes the speech more vivid.

Political speeches are very formal. So compound sentences are frequently used, which can make the speech much more informative and more functional. Take a sentence in Gettysburg Address as example: “It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced.”“which they who fought…”functions as an attributive clause. It makes information clear and the speech more complicated.

Political speeches are made to realize different political purposes. So, different sentence types, like declarative sentence, question, exclamatory sentence, imperative sentence, are used. Declarative sentence expresses an objective idea. It gives people an impression of formality and can make the text more believable. Question is undoubtedly a good choice when the speaker wants to emphasis his point. Imperative sentences are the most persuasive and inspiring one. President Lincoln just uses declarative sentence to show seriousness in his speech.

Figures of speech

A figure of speech is the use of a word or a phrase, which transcends its literal interpretation. It often provides emphasis, freshness of expression, or clarity. As I have mentioned before, the object of a political speech is to illustrate, convince and persuade the audience that what the speaker is saying and representing so that the audience can support them. So, to realize this object effectively, speakers always use proper figures of speech in their political speeches. Next I am going to talk about major figures of speech from three aspects used in political speeches:

1: Phonetic Stylistic Devices

It can be divided into onomatopoeia, alliteration and assonance, among which the major used one is alliteration. Alliteration can enhance the sense of rhythm and improve the efficiency of expression. By using this, the audience will have a deep impression on the speech. In Gettysburg Address, President Lincoln uses much alliteration, such as “four score and seven years”“a new nation”“our poor power”.

2: Semantic Rhetoric

Semantic rhetoric can be divided into simile, metaphor, personification, metonymy, synecdoche, transferred epithet, hyperbole, pun etc. Metaphor is frequently used in political

speeches. A metaphor describes a subject by asserting that it is, on some point of comparison, the same as another otherwise unrelated object. It can change abstract things into specific ones and make the language more vivid and easy to understand. In Gettysburg Address, President Lincoln uses “conceived” to compare a country to a child. The establishment of the country is just the birth of a child.

3: Syntactical Stylistic Devices

It includes parallelism, antithesis, rhetorical question, irony, climax and parody. Parallelism refers to a structural arrangement of words, clause, sentence, paragraphs and even parts of the text. It can emphasis the mood, highlight the stressed content, and enhance the sense of language. Antithesis is used when two opposites are introduced in the same sentence, for contrasting effect. In political speeches, speakers use this rhetorical device combined with others to show strong persuasion, expression and appeal. In Gettysburg Address, there are examples, like “living and dead”“add or detract”“the world will little note nor long remember what we said here, but it can never forget what we did here.” Rhetorical question is also used in political speeches. It is a figure of speech in the form of a question that is asked in order to make a point. The question, a rhetorical device, is posed not to elicit a specific answer, but rather to encourage the listener to consider a message or viewpoint. Used in a political speech, it can impel the audience to have a deep thought and give them a lasting impression.

From the analysis above, we can draw a conclusion of the stylistic features of political speeches. At lexical level, the words used are always formal and serious. Pronouns and modal verbs are also made full advantage of. At syntactical level, long and short sentences are both used in different degrees. Besides, compound sentences and various sentence types, like declarative sentence, question, are also applied in political speeches to make it more inspiring and motivating. Then, as to figures of speech, various types are adopted to make the speech more vivid and lively so that the audience can accept it easily. Political speeches play a great part of our life. So it is necessary for us to know about its stylistic features. In the future, if we are going to give a political speech, we will know exactly what we are going to say and how to say it effectively.