Európa az EU politikai vezetőinek beszédeiben
Europe in Speeches by Political Leaders of the European Union

Summary/Abstract: Europe is one of the key words and key concepts in the political discourse about the European Union. Applying the theoretical foundations of cognitive linguistics and pragmatics, it is possible to analyze the metonymy of the word ‛Europe’, its name transfer or name change, as well as to explore the various meanings of the word in the speeches of the leading politicians of European Union. The consequence is on the one hand a communication disorder, as it is difficult for the recipients to follow the possibilities of interpretations of the concept which is sometimes narrowing and sometimes expanding. On the other hand, different interpretations among the layers of the concept result in frequent shifts in the points of view from which we can draw the conclusion about the ideological beliefs of the politicians. In the speeches delivered in 2017 and 2018, the frequent use of metonymy and change of perspective as a means of persuasion were probably due to the fierce political struggle. Jean-Claude Juncker’s 2018 speech on the situation of the Union and Ursula von der Leyen’s 2019 program speech contained less metonymic references. On the whole, it is clear that narrowing the concept of Europe to the European Union is very typical.

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