Pronom on et construction de l’ethos dans le discours politique. Analyse sémantico-argumentative et quantitative des discours du président nigérien Issoufou

Abstract

 The study aims to observe how the different uses and values of the French pronoun ‘on’ contribute to the process of constructing presidential ethos in political discourse. Two hypotheses are put forward: the first is that ‘on’ can be an effective linguistic device for political leaders to construct specific argumentative strategies with regard to their co-speakers; the second is that the argumentative functions and presidential ethos conveyed by this pronoun can vary depending on whether the head of state is addressing citizens or the political class. These hypotheses will be tested using a corpus of speeches delivered by former Nigerien head of state Mahamadou Issoufou. The different uses of the pronoun will be classified and quantified in a descriptive grid specifically designed for the analysis of the argumentative functions of ‘on’ in political discourse. The usefulness of a multifactorial approach to the interpretation of this pronoun will also be defended.