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Propaganda as expressed through nouns
Full text linkThis article is based in part on a PhD titled "Die linguistiese eienskappe van propaganda [The
linguistic properties of propaganda]", which the author completed at the North-West University,
under the supervision of Professor Bertus van Rooy.Previous studies have often used a critical discourse approach to analyse propaganda texts. Although the social function of language in propaganda texts is well recognised and researched, the systematic aspect of the language used to fulfil this function seems less well understood. To draw more general conclusions about the way in which nouns are used to express propaganda, systemic functional linguistics was used to analyse texts identified as propaganda. This study is a qualitative study, although a quantitative presentation of the data is also provided. The texts used in the study thematically pertains to former South African president, Jacob Zuma, and are a combination of texts thematically focusing on two controversial South African cases, namely Nkandla and state capture. During Zuma's term, he was implied in both of these cases. The events enjoyed large-scale media attention and many texts were generated, some of which were pro-Zuma and some of which were against Zuma. Some of the salient findings include: the propaganda text group contains more subjective nouns than the non-propaganda text group. This high number of evaluative terms can be understood with the interpersonal metafunction in mind. For propagandists to attain their aims, they have to invite the receiver of the communication to join their perspective. These nouns are often used in collocations and can be used to create a specific discourse in a society. It is well known that nouns are used for different propaganda techniques, especially for dysphemism, but they can also be used for a specific type of dysphemism, namely self-dysphemism.https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rall202023-08-15hj2023Afrikaan
Propaganda language : quantifiers and pronouns
Full text linkHierdie artikel is gebaseer op ’n PhD getitel "Die linguistiese eienskappe van propaganda", wat die
outeur aan die Noordwes-Universiteit onder leiding van professor Bertus van Rooy voltooi het.Verskeie studies is al oor die taalgebruik van propaganda gedoen, maar dikwels met behulp van kritiese diskoersanalise, wat die klem op magsverhoudinge plaas en wat dikwels gebruik word om teksspesifieke afleidings te maak. Met die doel om gesistematiseerde afleidings oor die taaleienskappe van propaganda in die breë te maak, word Sistemies Funksionele Linguistiek in hierdie artikel gebruik.
Ná die sortering van tekste as propaganda- of niepropagandatekste (as kontrolegroep) met behulp van ’n inhoudelik-gebaseerde sorteringsmodel, is die gebruik van kwantifiseerders en voornaamwoorde in beide teksgroepe geanaliseer. Die studie is ’n kwalitatiewe studie: elke teksgroep bestaan uit agt tekste waarvan ses tekste Engels en twee Afrikaans is. Die tema van die tekste is oudpresident Jacob Zuma se betrokkenheid by die Nkandla- en staatskapingskandale in Suid-Afrika.
Die gevolgtrekkings sluit die volgende in: niespesifieke kwantifiseerders kan in propagandatekste gebruik word om ware inligting te verdoesel en spesifieke kwantifiseerders kan weer gebruik word om wetenskapsdiskoers (wat mediadiskoers moet insluit) na te boots om geloofwaardigheid te verhoog. Voornaamwoorde kan gebruik word om spesifieke eienaarskapskakels te maak, maar soos dit die propagandis se saak pas. Kataforiese voornaamwoorde (as deel van aanwysende voornaamwoorde) kan weer gebruik word om afstand te skep, wat die propagandis help om defleksie te bewerkstellig. Buiten vir die gewone kohesiefunksie, word die herhaling van sekere voornaamwoorde vir strategiese doeleindes gebruik.
Alhoewel daar ’n ooreenkoms in beide teksgroepe bestaan wat die ideasionele metafunksie betref, maak ’n propagandis in ’n groter mate op die interpersoonlike funksie staat om ’n ekstra betekenislaag in die teks te integreer.A variety of studies have been conducted on the language used in propaganda, but often from
a critical discourse perspective, which emphasises power relations and frequently draws textspecific
conclusions. To draw conclusions about the systematic aspects of the language used
in propaganda texts, Systemic Functional Linguistics was used in this study.
After using a content-based identification model to sort the texts used in this study as
either non-propaganda (as a control group) or propaganda texts, the quantifiers and pronouns
were analysed in both text groups. This is a qualitative study: each text group consists of eight
texts of which six texts are in English and two in Afrikaans. The texts thematically pertain to
former South African president Jacob Zuma and his involvement in the Nkandla and state
capture scandals.
The conclusions of this study include the following: by analysing quantifiers according
to specificity, certain differences between the text groups can be identified. Non-specific
quantifiers can be used in propaganda texts to hide true information as they can be used to
create the idea that there is either more or less than what would constitute an accurate
representation of reality.
Where specific quantifiers are used in non-propaganda texts to report events accurately,
specific quantifiers can be used in propaganda texts to imitate scientific discourse (which
should include media discourse and therefore points to the expansion of the technique) in
order to increase the validity of a text.
With reference to the use of pronouns in general, more pronouns are used in the propaganda
text group than in the non-propaganda text group and certain types of pronouns are only
present in the propaganda text group.
Personal pronouns feature more frequently in propaganda texts, namely 61,1% (of the
total number of pronouns in both text groups), as opposed to possessive pronouns, namely
23,4% (of the total number of pronouns in both text groups). When comparing the number of
personal pronouns in non-propaganda texts with those used in propaganda texts, there is a
smaller difference between the two text groups than the difference in respect of the number of
possessive pronouns in the text groups under discussion. Possessive and personal pronouns
are used for similar propaganda techniques, such as dysphemism, polarisation and deflection
being used for purposes of creating a smokescreen. Some of these pronouns – for example the
personal pronoun “we” – can be used to create a feeling of inclusivity between the propagandist
and the reader and can also be used to enhance exclusivity.
Pronouns can be used in non-propaganda texts to describe and, if necessary, create links
of ownership according to facts. In comparison to this function, pronouns can be used to make
strategic ownership links if or when they suit the propagandist’s cause. Sometimes a similar
function can be seen in non-propaganda texts, but it is usually due to referencing and can
therefore not be ascribed to the text author directly, but to the referenced source.
When demonstrative pronouns in propaganda texts are compared to non-propaganda
texts, it is necessary to further analyse this pronoun group in order to better understand its
functions. Anaphoric pronouns feature in a similar way in both text groups, except when a
propagandist, for example, places a pronoun strategically, with a specific aim in mind. Apart
from its normal cohesion function, certain pronouns are repeated strategically, adding an
extra semantic layer to a text.
Cataphoric pronouns are only present in propaganda texts and can be used to create
distance between a propagandist and a certain action in order to deflect attention. Similar to anaphoric pronouns, the placing of cataphoric pronouns can be done strategically. There are
no emphatic pronouns in the non-propaganda texts of this study. These pronouns are used in
propaganda to, from a distant position, show disapproval and to integrate dysphemism in this
way.
Although there are similarities between the text groups regarding the ideational metafunction,
a propagandist depends on the interpersonal metafunction in order to integrate
subjective meaning in the text.UPSET (Understanding and Processing Language in Complex
Settings) navorsingseenheidhttp://tgwsak.co.zahj2021Afrikaan
Vernacular Afrikaans : descriptions and attitudes
Full text linkNo abstract available.http://spilplus.journals.ac.zaam2024AfrikaansNon
Public discourse about South African farm violence on Facebook
Full text linkDissertation (MA (Linguistics))--University of Pretoria, 2023.Farm attacks have become highly politicised in South Africa. According to certain groups, the attacks are racially motivated, constituting hate crimes, whereas others sense they represent a larger crime predicament in the country and do not deserve special treatment. Research on farm violence in South Africa approached it from a criminological, sociological, and psychological angle. In these studies, farm violence is explored as a crime category and as part of the larger concern of settler colonial rhetoric. The psychological effects are explored in psychology. Dissertation-level publications directing this topic as critical discourse analysis are in media studies and not linguistics. These studies allude to linguistic elements, complimentary to the overarching theme of how information is shared about farm violence online. One of these studies addressed some of the specific lexical items used to address farm attacks on Facebook; however, these items were explored within a framework of encoding and decoding, and the intention of their exploration was to observe how audiences read and interpret media content. Neither of these studies specifically addressed the emotive language of farm violence. The research conducted in this study therefore adopted a different approach to farm violence discourse by employing evaluative theory. This study is substantiated in systemic functional linguistics and explores South African farm violence discourse on a semantic level by focusing on evaluative language. It investigated the evaluative language across three Facebook pages with polarised stances on farm violence. The two major stances identified are 1) farm violence is a part of the larger crime problem in South Africa and is not racially motivated, and 2) farm violence is racially motivated, indicating a White genocide in the country. Two instances of farm violence were explored, indicating the Senekal and the Mkhondo incident. In the Senekal incident, the victim of the farm violence was White. In the Mkhondo matter, the victims were Black. The study adopted an adapted evaluative framework to explore the evaluation parameters within these texts. Evaluative theory was chosen as a research method, allowing for the tackling of the finer, especially emotive, nuances of meaning in language, which is crucial when exploring online language. As expected, across the posts, the GOOD-BAD parameter was utilised the most at 54.63% in total, followed by the IMPORTANCE parameter at 20.37%, the CERTAINTY parameter at 17.13%, and the EXPECTEDNESS parameter at 7.87%. As expected, across the comment sections, the GOOD-BAD parameter was also utilised the most at 41.19% in total, followed by the CERTAINTY parameter at 24.75%, the IMPORTANCE parameter at 17.31%, and the EXPECTEDNESS parameter at 16.74%.Two main themes were explored, indicating ethnicity and role players. The subthemes involve hate, fear, and a call to defend the ‘greater good’. As evidenced by the hostile comments towards individuals with differing stances, the discourse about South African farm violence on Facebook is emotional, racial, and polarised and calls for violence towards the other side. Within these stances, larger South African issues, such as land reform and identity, are discussed. The Facebook page adopting the stance that farm violence is a sign of a larger crime problem in the country, implicated the farmers and the legacy of apartheid as the cause of farm violence. The Facebook page adopting the stance that farm violence is racially motivated implicates the government and the Economic Freedom Fighters as the cause of farm violence.AfrikaansMA (Linguistics)Unrestricte
Napraatswartafrikaans: konteks en persepies van die alternatiewe gebruik van Swartafrikaans
Full text linkNapraatswartafrikaans word gebruik wanneer Afrikaansmoedertaalsprekers Swartafrikaans namaak en onder mekaar gebruik. Hierteenoor staan die oorspronklike ontstaansvorm en -funksie van Swartafrikaans, naamlik om as 'n ondersteuningstaal tussen 'n Afrikataalmoedertaalspreker en 'n Afrikaansmoedertaalspreker gebruik te word. Die konteks van en die persepsies rondom Napraatswartafrikaans is nog nie in die reeds bestaande literatuur beskryf nie. In hierdie ondersoek word bogenoemde elemente vanuit die gegronde teorie ondersoek. Hierdie kwalitatiewe ondersoek is uitgevoer met behulp van vraelyste, 'n fokusgroeponderhoud en e-pos-onderhoude. Na afloop van die ondersoek is onder meer die volgende bevind: die kontekstuele elemente kan in afdelings van 'n makro- en 'n mikrokonteks verdeel word. Die makrokonteks, in hierdie geval grootliks die sosiohistoriese agtergrond van Suid-Afrika, be'nvloed die persepsies wat sprekers rondom Swartafrikaans en daarom ook dikwels Napraatswartafrikaans het. Elemente van die mikrokonteks, waarin 'n spreker Napraatswartafrikaans gebruik, word op hulle beurt weer deur hi'rdie persepsies geaffekteer. Die studie lewer 'n belangrike bydrae tot bewusmaking van die sensitiwiteit wat rondom soortgelyke vari'teite kan bestaan en dat sprekers dit tydens kommunikasie in gedagte moet hou
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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