Discourse analysis of reports by Walter Duranty on the Soviet Union

The main idea of the paper is that a discourse is formed by different discursive models. Political journalism isviewed as a type of media discourse. A journalistic text is a central unit of linguistic analysis. A journalistic text is a type of texts inwhich the role of the author is extremely high. A series of media discourse analysis methods is discussed. Special discourse componentsof Duranty's reports make up a discursive model. The macrothematic structure is a category in discourse analysis which specifies a subdiscourse.Social effect is the final goal pursued by discourse agents. The macrotheme and the social effect (discursive categories) makea linguist categorize the reports under analysis as the Soviet geopolitical discourse. The specific characteristics of the soviet geopoliticaldiscourse are viewed. Special discourse components of Duranty's reports such as historical context, ideology and values, discourseagents and clients, macrostructure and strategies are analyzed. So the thematic repertoire is determined by a subdiscourse (Soviet ideologyand relation of the Soviets to the Western countries is the main theme) and is objectified by ideological lexis: Stalinism, five yearplan, etc. Also this is a factor which determines the main strategy used by Duranty - contrast. But Duranty's goal is to transform thestereotypes and to "defend" and "explain" the ideology he believes in and different notions connected with it, such as collectivization,Marxism and so on. So he uses other strategies - concession, correction. The most important information is put in the foreground of thetext. The texts are highly repetitive. Metaphors, gradation, alliteration are the specific features of Duranty's style: these methods help theauthor to accentuate his ideas. So we may conclude that the discursive model which the author chooses is the model of reality in hismind: he may choose and use such strategies which help him objectify it in his texts. No only history changes our discourses. Author'sintentions and discursive choices are also the way stereotypes and images of discourses transform.

Keywords

Authors

References