From denigration to praising. General semantic strategies and the image of superpowers in El Siglo in Chile (1957-1962)

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Published: Feb 22, 2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4067/S0071-17132003003800003

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Guillermo Latorre
University of Southern Indiana. Department of Foreign Languages. 8600 University Boulevard. Evansville, Indiana 47712, USA.
Olly Vega

Abstract

Chile did not escape the ideological confrontation between the USA and the URSS. The writers of newspaper editorials took sides in the conflict. The present paper explores the image of both superpowers from the perspective of the left-wing press, represented by El Siglo. A corpus of 45 editorials and opinion pieces is examined, adapting categories from analyses of racist and sexist discourse. Ideology is examined regarding its role in the structuring of the texts. Two major semantic strategies stand out: accusation and positive self-presentation. The results suggest that the categories from racist and sexist discourse studies must be re-defined for a more coherent view of ideologically-based newspaper texts.


A tentative identification of the readers most likely to be addressed by the articles in the corpus is also proposed.
The paper is a part of a broader inquiry into the image of the superpowers from the Chilean perspective.

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How to Cite
Latorre, G., & Vega, O. (2018). From denigration to praising. General semantic strategies and the image of superpowers in El Siglo in Chile (1957-1962). Philological Studies, (38), 31–47. https://doi.org/10.4067/S0071-17132003003800003
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No. 38 (2003)
Section
Artículos
Author Biography

Guillermo Latorre, University of Southern Indiana. Department of Foreign Languages. 8600 University Boulevard. Evansville, Indiana 47712, USA.

Este estudio se realizó con el apoyo de la University of Southern Indiana a través de su Fondo de Desarrollo Académico (Faculty Research and Creative Work Awards). Nuestros agradecimientos a la Dra. Peggy F. Harrell, Directora de FRCWA, a la Dra. Adriana Bolívar, Universidad Central de Venezuela, al Dr. Patricio Bernedo, Director del Centro de Estudios Mediáticos, y al Sr. Cristián Opazo, del Programa de Magíster en Letras, ambos de la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.