- Title
- The language of strategy: a study in Australian prime ministerial rhetoric and campaign speechmaking, 1983-2013
- Creator
- Gizzi-Stewart, Brooke
- Relation
- University of Newcastle Research Higher Degree Thesis
- Resource Type
- thesis
- Date
- 2019
- Description
- Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
- Description
- What makes a political speech persuasive? Which approaches can be used to understand the mechanisms of strategic language in political speechmaking, and determine their influence? Political actors in all political systems from despots to democrats use political rhetoric in many aspects of their role. These rhetorical activities are so central to the way we understand politics that they have become an integral part of the way we are governed. Since politics involves the contest of ideas, beliefs and meanings, analysis should focus on argumentation—the original site of rhetorical theory and practice. Drawing on the classical rhetorical tradition and contemporary rhetorical theory, this thesis examines a little studied area of the Australian political process: political speechmaking. The purpose is to explore the function of rhetoric in contemporary Australian political speechmaking by analysing the full transcripts of 16 Australian federal election campaign speeches across a thirty year period: 1983-2013. The thesis develops an original methodological approach to analyse these speeches. It combines a modified version of Alan Finlayson’s rhetorical political analysis with the use of text analysis software Leximancer. Using this method to analyse the campaign launch speeches by the prime minister and, during shifts of incumbency, those of the opposition leader, the thesis identifies the strategic use of rhetorical techniques by examining rhetorical appeals, argumentation structure and narratives. These techniques point to a ‘language of strategy’ unique to each study period. The term ‘language of strategy’ captures the sustained and longitudinal use of a rhetorical method and style, in particular the overarching tone and form of the rhetorical arguments and language expressed across the set piece speeches in the study periods. The language of strategy confirms patterns of persuasive language relating to prime ministers and electoral success, demonstrating a link between arguments that appeal to three core persuasive narratives and successful bids for national leadership: the nation-building argument, articulating a vision, and building ethos through values. Similarly, the thesis findings indicate persuasive language trends associated with changes of incumbency, particularly in how successful opposition leaders harness the rhetoric of opportunism to frame change in positive terms. The analysis of the language of strategy presented in this thesis also reveals broader cultural, historical and behavioural aspects specific to the study periods, political environment and political leadership and is a formative line of enquiry for other scholars of rhetorical political speech analysis. By undertaking a textual analysis of rhetorical speech during these fundamental moments of democracy, the thesis demonstrates how the words of political leaders are fashioned into electoral weapons to affect political outcomes, and in particular how this language of strategy frames a rhetorical path to electoral legitimacy.
- Subject
- rhetoric; speechmaking; election campaigns; Australian politics; persuasion
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1397120
- Identifier
- uon:34192
- Rights
- Copyright 2019 Brooke Gizzi-Stewart
- Language
- eng
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| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT01 | Thesis | 11 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download | ||
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT02 | Abstract | 148 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |