Metaphors of Dictatorship and Democracy: Change in the Russian Political Lexicon and the Transformation of Russian Politics

Abstract

Metaphors act as cues to social identities. Political discourse that communicates the distinctiveness of the rulers' identity sustains authoritarianism by cueing people to act as either oppressors or oppressed, while political discourse that cues identification by citizens with politicians promotes democracy by encouraging people to participate. In Politburo speeches from the era of Soviet authoritarianism, metaphors of size, superiority, distance, and subordination were abundant. These metaphors are suitable for emphasizing the separateness of politics from ordinary life and for communicating the inferiority of the populace. In Politburo speeches from the transition year 1989, these metaphors had already begun to decrease in frequency, while new metaphors, often borrowed from the discourse of international diplomacy, deconstructed the rulers' claims to continuing authority. In Russian political discourse from the first years of electoral politics, authoritarian metaphors decline even more sharply and are replaced by metaphors of choice and identification suitable for encouraging people to align themselves with electoral candidates.

Cutting the Umbilical Cord: Patriarchy and the Family Metaphor in Turgenev's Virgin Soil

“…13 The patriarchal socio-political outlook easily survived throughout the Soviet period, when Communist leaders compared the party to a family 'with themselves in the position of the parent.' 14 This sentiment is still expressed by some Russian citizens towards Russia's president today. 15 In Turgenev's lifetime, the patriarchal mindset overcame even the cultural rift between the nobility and the serfs that had formed in the wake of Peter the Great's far-reaching reforms.…”

“…Your labours are in vain my friend … I don't need you to remind me of the fact.' (14) Even without Paklin's observation that one's lineage colors one's political convictions Nezhdanov is already painfully aware of the burden his kinship presents to him. Soon after the conversation with Paklin, Nezhdanov goes to a theatre where he takes a seat in a front row.…”

Metafora w działaniu

“…Oprócz "burzy mózgów" wprowadzono też inne metafory, które mają na celu redukcję czynników ograniczających twórcze podejście do projektów. Altshuller (2000) proponuje metaforę różdżki czarodziejskiej jako sposobu na uwolnienie wyobraźni z wszelkich ograniczeń. John Arnold z kolei zaleca metaforę planety Arktur IV.…”

“…przejście od systemu totalitarnego do demokratycznego. Sytuacja taka miała miejsce, gdy Związek Radziecki przemieniał się w Rosję w 1990 (za: Anderson, 2001). Mała próbka z przemówienia propagandowego z 1979 roku Michaiła Susłowa: "Przodownicy pracy spełniają wysokie normy w swoim stosunku do obowiązku wobec społeczeństwa" .…”

Untitled

“…как операции мышления, лежащей в основе языковой метафоры. Положения этой теории используются в многочисленных современных исследованиях концептуальных метафор политического дискурса(см., например, [Баранов, Караулов 1991;Anderson 2001;Чудинов 2001; Яворська, Богомолов 2010]) и позволяют углубить понимание политической метафоры как когнитивного механизма идеологического воздействия.Цель данной статьи состоит в выявлении и систематизации концептуальных метафор в официальных публичных речах Б. Обамы и В. Путина, а также в уяснении роли метафорической системы как инструмента идеологического влияния, осуществляемого на общество ведущими политиками. Фактический материал представлен МВ, выявленными в текстах, полученных из официальных Интернет-ресурсов: 195 МВ из 15 речей Б. Обамы и 158 МВ из 15 речей В. Путина.…”