Empire of rhetorics : a discursive/rhetorical approach to the study of Japanese monarchism
This thesis takes a discursive/rhetorical approach to the topic of support for modern constitutional monarchy. It examines in detail some of the rhetorical devices used by modern Japanese speakers when they discuss monarchism. In so doing the thesis highlights both the discursive and social dilemmas involved in contemporary monarchism. In Britain, another constitutional monarchical state, critical psychologists have analysed what have been called 'dilemmas of lived ideology' (BiIIig et al., 1988). Billig (1992) analysed ordinary people's discourses about British monarchism. He points out that people employ dilemmatic themes as they justifY, mitigate and make sense of their own non-privileged positions under egalitarianism. I use Billig's work as a main reference, and apply his analytical frameworks (discursive psychology) for my investigation ofJapanese monarchism. Amongst several features ofJapanese conversation, I focus on its complicated naming and honorific systems. These systems almost always encode power structures amongst speaker-addressee, speaker-referent as well as addressee-referent relationships. Analysing people's mundane (family) conversations about the Emperor system, I have found contradictory
Kondo, Sachihiko
Ideology ; Dilemma ; Discourse ; Rhetoric ; Discursive psychology ; Constructionalism ; Japanese ; Grammar ; Monarchy
Empire of rhetorics : a discursive/rhetorical approach to the study of Japanese monarchism. This thesis takes a discursive/rhetorical approach to the topic of support for modern constitutional monarchy. It examines in detail some of the rhetorical devices used by modern Japanese speakers when they discuss monarchism. In so doing the thesis highlights both the discursive and social dilemmas involved in contemporary monarchism. In Britain, another constitutional monarchical state, critical psychologists have analysed what have been called 'dilemmas of lived ideology' (BiIIig et al., 1988). Billig (1992) analysed ordinary people's discourses about British monarchism. He points out that people employ dilemmatic themes as they justifY, mitigate and make sense of their own non-privileged positions under egalitarianism. I use Billig's work as a main reference, and apply his analytical frameworks (discursive psychology) for my investigation ofJapanese monarchism. Amongst several features ofJapanese conversation, I focus on its complicated naming and honorific systems. These systems almost always encode power structures amongst speaker-addressee, speaker-referent as well as addressee-referent relationships. Analysing people's mundane (family) conversations about the Emperor system, I have found contradictory
empire rhetoric discursive rhetorical study japanese take discursive rhetorical topic support modern constitutional monarchy examines_detail rhetorical_device use modern japanese speaker discuss highlight discursive social dilemma involve contemporary britain another constitutional monarchical state critical psychologist analyse call dilemmas live ideology analyse ordinary_people discourse british point people employ theme justify mitigate make_sense non privileged position egalitarianism use work main reference apply analytical_framework discursive psychology investigation amongst several feature conversation focus complicate naming honorific system system almost_always encode power structure amongst speaker_addressee speaker referent well addressee referent relationship analysing people mundane family conversation emperor system find contradictory