LANGUAGE AS A STRATEGIC TOOL FOR POWER IN COMMUNICATION
https://doi.org/10.59982/18294359-26.1-ls-24
Abstract
Language plays a crucial role in the exercise of power and the present article aims to study how language can be used as a strategic tool for power in different types of communications. It also helps to better understand why language should be studied in context and what impact its types may have on communication.
The methodology of this study is a systematic critical literature review combined with conceptual analysis, through which key concepts drawn from sociolinguistics, discourse theory, and related fields are examined and compared. The review follows a thematic synthesis procedure: relevant scholarly sources were identified, their core arguments on language, power, and discourse were extracted, and recurring themes; including identity construction, symbolic power, and institutional gatekeeping, were synthesised into a coherent analytical framework.
The relevance of this study lies in the examination of language as a tool of power contributing to a deeper understanding of how dominance is maintained through discourse.
The results of the review indicate that, although language can be defined in various ways, a core function attributed to it across the scholarly literature is its role as a medium of power. The novelty of the study is determined by the fact that unlike the traditional approaches the present study conceptualizes language as a dynamic mechanism of influence rather than a means of information exchange. The reviewed sources consistently argue that language operates as a means through which social identities are shaped and negotiated, particularly in political, institutional, and media contexts.
Keywords: language, Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), communication, power, discourse.
PAGES: 294—303