Public Language and the Construction of Meaning: A Poetics of Recent American Presidential Inauguration Speeches

Abstract

This thesis investigates how public language constructs and communicates meaning by focusing on the 21st-century American presidential inauguration speeches of Presidents George Walker Bush, Barack Hussein Obama, Donald John Trump, and Joseph Robinette Biden. This research examines the poetic and rhetorical devices, patterns of repetition and variation, and the evolution of the inauguration speech as a genre through a case study approach using close poetic readings informed by the analysis of poetry. This research is significant because it contributes to understanding meaning construction in public language, the evolution of the inauguration speech genre, and the significant power of poetry and poetics in enhancing message delivery in what might be described as non-poetic language. Employing the Inaugural Speech Genre Theory developed by Campbell and Jamieson, this study sheds light on the intricate interplay between language, power, and meaning in the context of presidential inaugurations. It draws upon previous studies on political rhetoric, public discourse, and speech genre analysis and provides new perspectives and methodologies, offering valuable insights into the construction and communication of meaning in public language. By examining the poetic elements, rhetorical strategies, and patterns of repetition and variation in the selected speeches, this research enriches the field of presidential inaugurations and contributes to the broader literature on political rhetoric and public discourse. This study provides a framework for analysing the aesthetic and persuasive dimensions of public language, opening avenues for further research in the analysis of meaning construction in diverse communicative contexts.