A Discourse Analysis Of The American President Donald J. Trump's Inaugural Speech Based On Functional Grammar

The inaugural speech is a public speech made by a president of USA before he/she takes office,in which he/she states governing philosophy,shows his/her personal charisma,and expresses a bright future for fellow citizens under his/her leadership.Therefore,some unique linguistic features are shown in the speech.Based on the framework of Functional Grammar,the thesis makes an analysis of the American President Donald J.Trump's inaugural speech.And the following research methods are adopted: classification,illustration and data analysis.Through carefully analysis,some major findings are as follows:(1)In the ideational perspective,most processes in the speech are material processes that play an important part in the statement of facts.And most voice adopted in the speech is active non-middle voice that reflects speaker's subjective wish on controlling the listeners' feeling.(2)In the interpersonal perspective,most subjects in speech are “we” by which Trump wants to unite the people as a whole one.And the moods adopted here are mainly declaratives,which are presentations of President's unshakable power.With respect of modality,he uses positive-median modal verbs most often,which can show a relatively moderate attitude out of the honorable majesty.(3)In the textual perspective,the unmarked simple themes are most frequently shown,they can help make most listeners understand the information very easily and clearly.Cohesive devices are all applied in the speech,through which he lays emphasis on the fluency and relevancy.The analysis shows the unity of three metafunctions in the inaugural speech.And the linguistic features of President are also revealed.At the same time,the way he propagandizes his ruling philosophy,strengthens his reliability and shapes his social identity can be seen.