Implicature of speech accusations in English-language film discourse (the case of the film “Conclave”)
https://doi.org/10.18384/2949-5075-2025-5-100-109
Abstract
Aim. To identify the specific uses of implicit and explicit accusatory speech tactics in contemporary English-language film discourse.
Methodology. The English-language text of the film “Conclave” (2024) was analyzed. The study focuses on the discursive situations in which accusatory speech tactics are employed. Discursive situations featuring accusatory speech strategies were identified from the film discourse, and the tactics used were analyzed, along with the connections between the lines and implicit information about the accused. The key research methods are structural-semantic and contextual analysis.
Results. Based on the study's findings, it was concluded that implicit and explicit accusatory speech tactics are accompanied by corresponding visualizations in the film's plot. The primary syntactic tools of accusation are the use of complex sentences and anaphora. Lexical tactics involve the introduction of restricted vocabulary into the text, with which the viewer is unfamiliar.
Research implications. The theoretical significance of this study lies in its presentation of new material on the topic under study, introducing descriptions of the representation of accusatory speech tactics in contemporary film discourse, and featuring the speech of older adults, many of whom are non-native English speakers. The findings can be used to study discursive practices in contemporary English using contemporary cinema as an example.
About the Author
E. A. Drozdova
Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patris Lumumba
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Ekaterina A. Drozdova – Senior Lecturer, Department of Social Pedagogy, Institute of Foreign Languages
Moscow
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