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  • Intercultural Differences in English and German Political Discourse (Based on the Speeches of D.Trump and H.Clinton, A.Merkel, F.Steinmeier)

Intercultural Differences in English and German Political Discourse (Based on the Speeches of D.Trump and H.Clinton, A.Merkel, F.Steinmeier)

Student: Verzhbitskaya Maria

Supervisor: Elena Lutkova

Faculty: School of Foreign Languages

Educational Programme: Foreign Languages and Intercultural Communication (Bachelor)

Year of Graduation: 2021

The importance of political communication is growing tremendously due to a growth of democratic values. One of the main principles of democracy is an open discussion of state problems. Obviously, the decision made by the addressee as well as the attitude towards the politician will depend on the interpretation and style of presentation. Thus, the study of political discourse of the USA and Germany including linguistic manipulation, manipulative strategies and tactics will allow us to form an objective and unbiased picture of the political cultures of these countries. The interest in political discourse of the USA and Germany in our time is ignited with a high polarization of the debate between the United States and Western Europe. Political and media rhetoric has gone beyond the norm, exacerbating discussions and raising fundamental questions about the nature of democratic politics, especially when Donald Trump was elected as the president of the USA. The main goal of this work is to study and compare the political discourse of Angela Merkel, Donald Trump, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Hillary Rodham Clinton on the basis of their speeches in order to form the idea of political cultures of these countries. With this purpose in mind, a discourse analysis aimed at the study of linguistic peculiarities as well as manipulative techniques will be used. An important role in the study of discourse is played by national values, the knowledge of which is actively used by politicians to form the emotional mood of the audience. That is why a careful investigation of cultural values of the USA and Germany is conducted and then analyzed practically in this work. What is more, a comparative analysis will be performed, on the basis of which one will be able to see differences and similarities between styles of the politicians. The results of the research may contribute to a deeper understanding of the cultural and psychological traits of politicians as well as pave the way for a more comprehensive research of political discourse of the USA and Germany in the future.

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