Americanism in Arabic and Persian Political Presidential Speeches: A Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract

Americanism is a term that denotes the quality or state of being American. (Collins Dictionary). This is a unique characteristic of American English, particularly in comparison to British English. It is a pledge or devotion to the traditions, interests, or ideologies of the United States (Merriam-Webster, 2018). It is a collection of patriotic principles from the United States that are intended to establish a unified American identity. It is defined as a cultural style infused with political significance, a collection of traditions, and a political lexicon that expresses the nation's rightful position in the world. The American Legion, a veterans' organization in the United States, defines Americanism as an ideology that is defined by the dedication, patriotism, or allegiance to the United States, its flag, traditions, customs, culture, symbols, institutions, or governmental structure. Theodore Roosevelt states that Americanism is a matter of spirit, conviction, and purpose, rather than creed or birthplace. It refers to expressions articulated or inscribed in American English, as opposed to British English. For instance, the term "gas" as opposed to "petrol" or "candy" as opposed to "sweets". This study examines the impact of Americanism as an ideology on presidential speeches in Arabic and Persian by developing a model based on Hymes' (1974) and Van Leuween 's (2008) models. It aims at 1- demonstrating how the presidential addresses in Arabic and Persian have been influenced by Americanism as an ideology. 2-Identifying the ideological ends of such applications. 3- finding out how American terms are intentionally employed in the Arabic and Persian presidential speeches. The results generally show that the response to American ideology varies across all levels, including linguistic, cultural, and political. Moreover, it concluded that 1- democracy is extensively employed in both Arabic and Persian discourses. This denotes a substantial and essential application. 2- Arabic presidential speeches have been more influenced by Americanism ideology than Persian ones. 3- Al- Sissi in his speech is the highly affected one.