The political discourse of the Arab revolution: The case of Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and Syria

Abstract

The present chapter analyses political discourse used by leaders in response to uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Syria during the so-called 'Arab Spring'. Mubarak, Qaddafi, Ben Ali, and Assad responded to protest and revolution not only with actions but also with deliberate language choices that reveal complex attitudes towards protestors, nationalism, democracy, and unity and serve to attempt to justify their own presence, actions, and policies during a period of intense turmoil. Focusing on public speeches delivered by the four leaders, this chapter pays particular attention to specific themes and the use of dialectal Arabic in strategic attempts to reach the masses through vernacular language. The resurgence of colloquial spoken Arabic as a means of mobilization and a rival to Modern Standard Arabic ('MSA') beyond the descriptive language of slogans and communiques has overpowered the political arena, even though the political discourse of some Arab leaders, particularly Mubarak, epitomises the veneration and fear that MSA held and continues to hold. One striking feature in the political discourse of the revolution is the unprecedented use of colloquial Arabic by certain leaders and the adherence to MSA in the case of other leaders.