A Study of Interpersonal Function of Presidential Speeches

Abstract

This paper applies Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar to the study of interpersonal function in each two presidential speeches delivered by Barrack Obama and George W. Bush. It is found that there are several features in their presidential speeches. With respect to mood choice, declaratives account for 98.31% and imperatives 1.69%. Explicit subjective modalization is widely employed. These dominant features are closely connected to the communicative purpose of presidential speeches. This study proves that the theoretical framework of interpersonal function can be applied to the study of political discourse. It also deepens our understanding of the interpersonal function of presidential speeches and thus provides a new perspective in the study of political discourse.