A Comparative Analysis of Rhetorical Devices in Selected Political Speeches of Nelson Mandela and Nnamdi Kanu

A Comparative Analysis of Rhetorical Devices in Selected Political Speeches of Nelson Mandela and Nnamdi Kanu

Background to the Study

Language is a set of signs and symbols used to pass messages across to people. Language, verbal and non-verbal, is a means of communication. In fact, the primary purpose of language is communication. Human beings express their thoughts, feelings and ideas through language. Alliances are formed through language. Language fuels social interaction. We depend on language whenever the need to speak arises. When we speak, we want to be heard, to be obeyed, to be respected, to be admired, and to be liked. We use language to support and enable these desires to be realised. Language turns beliefs and thought processes to reality. Human languages are made up of words, and human beings do things with words. Because paralingualism has its own shortcomings, certain things cannot be achieved without words. Victoria Fromkin, Robert Rodman and Nina Hyams concur that ―… without words we would be unable to convey our thoughts through language or understand the thoughts of others‖ (36). These words are used to sing, play, joke, curse, convince, inform, motivate, persuade, etc. People have linguistic needs, and language meets these needs. Words are usually spoken spontaneously, and as a result, people tend to undermine the power of words. A great deal of attention would be paid to the words we speak, if we understood the wind beneath their wings. Linguistic skills are daily improved because of the power of language to impact lives. A speech writer‘s or orators‘ linguistic arsenal is filled with words. Every word in the lexicon of a language possesses valid meaning, and fulfils certain linguistic needs. But some words or linguistic strategies are very powerful. These powerful words are important in decision-making processes. Powerful words used as language is the total device of politicians to provoke the 2 winds and feelings of their audience and consequently to gain persuasion. Words that empower people have special meanings as they trigger emotional or psychological response. They tap into the reader‘s emotions, because they are very persuasive and irresistible. Their impact on hearers cannot be downplayed. It is worthy of note that these words ought to be used in the right context. Politicians and advertisers always employ these power words: new, you, because, instantly, happy, free, suddenly, mind-blowing, uncensored, scandalous, jaw-dropping, legendary, daring, refundable, authentic, etc, in order to arouse people‘s emotion. Words are not just a collection of alphabets. They are cues. Words can be funny as they have the power to transform an answer from the negative into the affirmative. Some words – please, excuse me, sorry, thank you – have been termed magic words. They have the power to turn around emotions. The five – letter - word – sorry, is capable of subsiding anger. Words are used to arouse persons to take certain actions. They evoke curiosity. Words evoke empathy. A single word can make all the difference or change the course of action, and so language possesses immense power – the power to convince, to influence, to control, to persuade and to dissuade. The impact of the power of language depends solely on how we exercise it. Professionals like politicians, lawyers, doctors, advertisers and speech writers understand the power of words. These speech writers advertise their linguistic prowess through speech writing. Speech writing is the art of writing a speech for public presentation. It requires creative writing skills. Style is to writing what salt is to food. Coming up with a good speech goes beyond merely stringing words together to have sentences. Speeches are written with clear intents and purposes– to explain, to persuade, to amuse, to inform, to entertain or to influence ideas. Speakers and listeners are different human beings from different backgrounds with separate belief systems and ideologies. They are usually evasive and sometimes deceptive. So, in order to get readers and listeners to agree to whatever a speaker/writer has to say, a speech writer needs to up the ante. A good speech ought to capture the attention of the audience, so speech writers employ different 3 attention-capturing strategies to give their speeches that flair. The piece of writing has to be lucid, interesting, informing and, above all, persuasive. Politicians often employ professional speech writers because the latter understand the power of language. Other public speakers, as well as speech writers, are not oblivious of this fact. In public speaking, the usual aims are to inform, to persuade, to actuate and to entertain the public. The speaker, the message, the medium of communication, the audience and the effect of the message on the hearers are significant factors. In the light of this, public speakers – including politicians – tend to motivate and persuade their hearers. During manifestoes, rallies, campaigns inauguration and governance, politicians always speak in front of an audience. If this is done well, the person‘s reputation is enhanced. Public speaking is one out of their many political activities, and language brings it to pass. Politics works hand in hand with language, especially persuasive and emotive language. Language and politics are intimately related as they influence each other. Language is an indispensable tool in politics. So, language and politics are in complementary distribution. They are dependent on one another. When we consider such linguistic issues in National Policy on Education as official language, minority languages, language hegemony, political correctness, language and national development and national language problems, we can say that language has become a political issue. Language is as much a political phenomenon as it is a social phenomenon. Politics mostly concerns itself with acquiring power, so politicians choose their words carefully. The language of politics is persuasive. These politicians are aware of the power of language to influence thoughts, to persuade and control people‘s behaviour, so they choose language strategies that will aid in achieving their aim. They persuade their audiences with their assertion of power. These strategies are those of persuasion and motivation. People are always at the 4 mercy of language manipulators like politicians. Persuasive language convinces, so through it, people are convinced or diplomatically manipulated without the use of force. Language is argumentative and has the ability to change minds or people‘s behaviours. It is a very powerful tool in the hands of a skilled language user in getting what he wants. Persuasion deals with influencing the beliefs, attitudes, behaviours, intentions and thoughts of a set of people. In the art of persuasion, one gets the audience to see things as one sees them. Politicians employ persuasive language to get the populace to accept their views and support their political careers. Citizens of any nation that are up to eighteen years are viable voters, and each voter gets to vote for just one political candidate. In the light of this, politicians employ the language of persuasion to sway the votes in their favour. They communicate through language. They use spoken words that will appeal to one and convince one to vote for them. These politicians use certain devices that will best relay their motives, promises, thoughts and ideas to their audience. Although elections are not won based on flamboyant speeches, but a persuasive speech can persuade and convince a large number of voters to align with a particular contender. Anyone running for an office and is armed with a captivating oratory, surely stands out from the rest. He or she is the darling of many voters. Osita Chidoka and Oseloka Obaze exemplified this in the just concluded Anambra State gubernatorial election. An exceptionally talented orator will always give passionate speeches that will motivate and persuade the audience. John Joseph concurs: The prototypes of great leaders are also great orators, such as Churchill, or Roosevelt … or Hitler. For the inspiring orator can also lead a people, or rather mislead them into believing that the narrow self-interests of the governing party are actually the interests of the people as a whole, when in fact, they work directly against the people (13). 5 Politicians usually employ rhetorical devices in their speeches because of their power of adding influence to language. Persuasive techniques in language are adopted; reasons and examples are presented in order to influence action and/or thought. Language and politics are intertwined, so language is a powerful tool in the hands of politicians. They manipulate it to achieve different purposes. Persuasive language is used to persuade the people, while emotive language appeals to them in order to achieve the desired effect. Language is used to achieve their political dreams and aspirations. Political discourse is successfully carried out if language is utilised and manipulated well to persuade the audience. Most political speeches in Africa are delivered in English. These African politicians avail themselves of the linguistic strategies inherent in this global language called the English language. These strategies comprise rhetorical devices and other figures of speech, politeness strategies, code-switching and code-mixing, emotive language and many others. The motive behind these strategies is persuasion. Language is used for the expression of emotions which is shown by the ability of persons to pour out much bottled nervous energy. This perspective is crucial in the analysis of these two activists‘ speeches because of the sense of painful denials. In this regard, language can be used to show annoyance, anger and anxiety. Language is a social instrument and a vehicle by which unity is promoted in society. This is because society always comprises of different groups of people who probably use language in different forums based on such elements as background, education, social class, profession, gender, religion etc. Language therefore, has magical powers to influence, persuade, control and direct.

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