Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Politics is football
T2 - metaphor in the discourse of Silvio Berlusconi in Italy.
AU - Semino, Elena
AU - Masci, Michela
PY - 1996
Y1 - 1996
N2 - In this paper we examine the use of a set of recurring metaphors in the discourse of Silvio Berlusconi, the media tycoon who became Italy's Prime Minister in 1994. We focus specifically on metaphors drawn from the source domains of football, war and the Bible. Drawing on the cognitive theory of metaphor proposed in Lakoff and Johnson (1980), we consider the possible effects that each metaphorical connection may have on Berlusconi's audience in the specific political and cultural context within which he operates. We argue that Berlusconi adopts different metaphors in an attempt to alter the way in which Italians relate to politics, to create a positive public image for himself and his new political party and to attract particular sections of the electorate. We conclude that metaphor is an essential part of a new type of populist and heterogeneous political discourse that Berlusconi has introduced in Italian politics.
AB - In this paper we examine the use of a set of recurring metaphors in the discourse of Silvio Berlusconi, the media tycoon who became Italy's Prime Minister in 1994. We focus specifically on metaphors drawn from the source domains of football, war and the Bible. Drawing on the cognitive theory of metaphor proposed in Lakoff and Johnson (1980), we consider the possible effects that each metaphorical connection may have on Berlusconi's audience in the specific political and cultural context within which he operates. We argue that Berlusconi adopts different metaphors in an attempt to alter the way in which Italians relate to politics, to create a positive public image for himself and his new political party and to attract particular sections of the electorate. We conclude that metaphor is an essential part of a new type of populist and heterogeneous political discourse that Berlusconi has introduced in Italian politics.
KW - Berlusconi
KW - Italy
KW - metaphor
KW - political discourse
U2 - 10.1177/0957926596007002005
DO - 10.1177/0957926596007002005
M3 - Journal article
VL - 7
SP - 243
EP - 269
JO - Discourse and Society
JF - Discourse and Society
SN - 1460-3624
IS - 2
ER -