Lexical and Pragmatic Features of the People–Elite Opposition in English-Language Political Campaigns
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.69760/gsrh.0260304018Keywords:
populist rhetoric, political discourse, people–elite opposition, nomination, deixis, political representationAbstract
The people–elite opposition is central to populist communication, yet its linguistic identification requires more than counting references to citizens or political opponents. This article examines how lexical choices and pragmatic relations construct this opposition in selected English-language campaign documents. A qualitative comparative close reading draws on Bernie Sanders's 2015 campaign-launch text, Donald Trump's 2016 and 2024 nomination-acceptance addresses, and Reform UK's 2024 programme. The analysis distinguishes nomination, evaluative predication, personal deixis, attribution of responsibility, and representative authority. In the selected passages, collective identities emerge through descriptions of economic position, political neglect, national membership, and institutional distance. Pronouns connect these categories to speakers and audiences, while claims to restore representation position candidates or parties as intermediaries between citizens and political power. An inclusive statement from Trump's 2024 address provides a contrasting case: broad national reference alone does not establish a populist opposition. The article proposes a contextual sequence linking group naming, antagonistic explanation, and representative remedy. This sequence is an interpretive aid rather than a validated measurement instrument. The findings support a relational understanding of populist rhetoric and provide a framework for political discourse analysis and critical language education without making claims about electoral effects or national prevalence.
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