Exploring Controversial Issues: Discursive Devices in Duterte’s Speeches

Abstract

The qualitative study examined the discursive devices in President Duterte’s speeches on controversial issues using Critical Discourse Analysis. This study looked at ten controversial speeches given by President Duterte between 2016 and 2019, including a hardline stance against drugs and criminality, an end to graft and corruption in the government, a despotic policy against drug pushers, making brash off-the-cuff remarks, extreme bravery, stepped-up attacks against the rebels, and intense love for his country. The study results revealed that President Duterte used different discursive devices such as dysphemism, directness, alliteration, anaphora, metaphor, epiphora, and expressive values to evoke affiliative responses from his audiences, offend groups of people, give rhythm to the speeches, and emphasize, influence, encourage, and persuade others. The findings may be utilized further to provide valuable insight to the people to become good listeners and properly discern a particular discourse's real and fundamental meaning.