A Study On The 2016 U.S. Presidential Election Debates From Meta-Functional And Sociocultural Perspectives

The 2016 U.S.presidential election was the most hotly contested,acrimonious and politically divisive in recent years.Viewed as an "outsider" and an "astonishing talker" by American politicians and the mainstream media,Donald Trump was not well received by the media and polls ahead of the election.Trump has even been portrayed by the mainstream media as an "idiot" and a "madman" because of his bold remarks.But Trump was finally elected as the 45 th President of the United States with 304 electoral college votes.The election results were unexpected.The last three presidential debates are worthy of attention.TV debate plays a vital role in the U.S.presidential election.It is an important indicator of the result of the U.S.presidential election and a key link for the victory of candidates.Hillary Clinton,who has been leading ahead in the general election,failed to secure victory through the debates,and was defeated by a political newcomer,Donald Trump.The result is worth provoking.Human language is a language in human society and culture.Language and social culture are interdependent.Language is the carrier of social culture.In turn,social culture restricts language.How did Donald Trump who always made astonishing speeches win the election? Was his victory a fluke or Are there profound reasons?This paper attempts to analyze the subjective and objective reasons for Donald Trump's election victory from the meta-functional and sociocultural perspectives.This is also an attempt and innovation of this paper.First of all,under the guidance of Halliday's meta-functional theory,this paper takes the 2016 presidential debates between Trump and Hillary as the research objects to build corpus.With the help of Antconc3.4.4 software,this paper compares and analyzes the differences of the two presidential candidates in language style and word characteristics.Using the quantitative and qualitative analysis methods,and with the help of charts,tables and examples,the author tries to reveal the differences of language styles and vocabulary strategies between Trump and Hillary and the communicative intentions hidden behind their words.Secondly,this paper discusses the deep reasons for Trump's victory from the sociocultural perspective.This paper aims to answer the following questions and propose a hypothesis :(1)how is meta-functions embodied in presidential debates?(2)similarities and differences between the two candidates in language style and word choice?(3)Does Trump's language strategy conform to the orientation of current American value of the majority,which helped him win the presidential election?The main findings of this paper are as follows:First,from the perspective of meta-functions,(1)in terms of the ideational function,Trump's use of material process is much higher than Hillary?s.It can be inferred that Trump was more rational and practical than Hillary in the debate,and he proposed more specific and practical plans and strategies for the future development of the United States.In contrast,Hillary appears to be more emotional,constantly appealing to the public through abstract words and ideas,trying to cause emotional resonance.(2)In terms of interpersonal function,both candidates used lots of median modal verbs,trying to create an image of being close to people.But in the use of high-value modal verbs,Trump is far more used than Hillary.Trump preferred modals with high value,while Clinton preferred modals with low and median values.It can be inferred that Trump was firm in attitude and tough in tone.He liked using extreme words and appeared more decisive.In contrast Hillary's language was more measured,muted and stylized.In addition,Hillary preferred to use the first-person singular form to share her own experiences by extensive use of "I",which is easy to exclude the audience,while Trump used the first-person plural form more often to narrow the distance between the audience and himself,making the public feel that he plans the future development of the United States from the perspective of ordinary people.(3)In terms of textual function,both candidates can use the rational arrangement of the theme and the rheme to highlight the key points and clarify the key information.But the focus is different.Hillary?s debate focused on plans and ideas.The American economy in her eyes has generally improved.Her vision for the future of America is a diversified and multicultural society.Trump advocated protectionism.He pointed out the problems that globalization brought to American society.Negative words appeared frequently in his debate.The current American society has been clearly divided into two distinct camps—social elites and ordinary people,and the differentiation of social values—conservatism and multiculturalism.Then,from the sociocultural perspective,the current American society has been clearly divided into two distinct camps—social elites and ordinary people,and the differentiation of social values—conservatism and multiculturalism.Trump correctly analyzed the changes in voters' structure and voters' demands,and faced up to the current prominent social problems in the United States.Trump defied "political correctness" and "elite class".He abandoned multiculturalism,and insisted “America First”.Trump's distinctive language style is consistent with the current value of the American majority and won the most support and votes from the middle and lower whites who are identified as "silent majority".The study helps broaden the research vision of political discourse,and better understand the language styles and strategies of the two presidential candidates.It also helps strengthen people's awareness of critical thinking to have a more comprehensive and objective understanding of Donald Trump and his victory in 2016 U.S.presidential election.