Ibérica (Apr 2017)
A cognitive-based approach to President Obama’s educational discourse through the lens of his State of the Union Addresses (2009-2016)
Abstract
In order to gain a cultural understanding of the discourse on education used by President Obama, this article examines the source domains commonly used to refer to education in his State of the Union Addresses, from the time he took office in 2009 to 2016 when he will leave office. The study will proceed by applying insights from Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), within the field of cognitive linguistics, supplemented by the Metaphor Identification Procedure (MIP) developed by the Pragglejazz Group. The source domains identified and discussed are: COMPETITION and ECONOMICS. In fact, the strong coherence in Obama’s speeches relies on the use of the story of competition as the concept that is repeated in and across speeches and that works as a persuasive device by framing reality and directing the audience’s thinking, perception and even action.
