Too Far too Far to the Left for the Right and to Far Right for the Left. Building a Rhetorical Vision in Szymon Hołownia’s Live Transmissions on Facebook During the Presidential Campaign in Poland, 2020
Too Far too Far to the Left for the Right and to Far Right for the Left. Building a Rhetorical Vision in Szymon Hołownia’s Live Transmissions on Facebook During the Presidential Campaign in Poland, 2020

Summary/Abstract: The Presidential election in Poland in 2020 were held in a turbulent time, not only because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but also because of the intensifying political struggle between the ruling party (Law and Justice) and its opponents (Civic Coalition), the ‘conservatives’ and the ‘liberals,’ the right and the left. This proved to be a great opportunity for Szymon Hołownia, the candidate who, in the first round of the election, came in third place, after the candidates from the two big opposing parties, receiving 13.9% of total votes. Hołownia’s campaign was run almost entirely by volunteers and financed through public fundraising. One of the main channels through which Hołownia communicated with his supporters were daily live transmissions on Facebook. The language and style in these transmissions were not what the audience was accustomed to in political campaigns, and very different from typical public speeches. Hołownia addressed his viewers directly, thanked them and always emphasized closeness, openness, and caring. He pursued a straightforward style, without however avoiding irony, word play, creative metaphors, and similes. On the other hand, as a former TV celebrity, he had to convince his viewers that he is a serious, well-qualified politician, who can comment in a balanced way on international affairs or economic problems. This paper will try to explore the rhetorical vision built by Hołownia in terms of Ernest Bormann’s fantasy-theme criticism.

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