The Political Discourse: A Mirror Reflecting a Leader’s Hidden Self

Abstract

DOI: 10.19251/sej/2019.9(5)

Abstract

Social, cultural and political power can be attained through such small ges­tures, words and simply through one‘s way of being. Great world leaders use words and political discourse as a calculated and deliberate tool in their political plans, as a way of sharing their valuable experience, or only what they intend to reveal to the world, with the hope that every gesture and thought will make a difference. Neverthe­less, the ideas that they display and want to put into practice may not be as selfless and benevolent as they let their people be­lieve, their discourses may be just a way of obtaining a strategic position in order to manifest their personal or institutional interests. This paper will try to shed some light on the characteristics of some strate­gic political discourse, belonging to Nel­son Mandela and Donald Trump, in order to reveal some of the most frequently used persuasion strategies through the use of language. It shall be revealed how words can provide people with a raptured vision of the future and the society they live in, or how they can represent an instrument of mass persuasion.