GRAMATIČKA KATEGORIJA LICA U DEKONSTRUKCIJI JAVNOG DISKURSA U SRBIJI

Abstract

The paper deals with the analysis of the category of grammatical person in shaping public political discourse in Serbia. The material is excerpted from government representatives’ spoken statements (interviews, media conferences etc.) regarding environmental problems that have escalated in 2021, especially public debate about Lithium exploration and possible mining. In the paper, we specifically analyzed the use of the first person singular and the first person plural from the aspect of reference, information transparency and emotional effect. The analysis of the material has shown that the first person singular is not frequent except in the public speeches of the president of the state. This is opposite to the aspiration of politicians to imply their involvement in institutional action and decision-making. However, in this socio-political context, the first person singular strengthens the leadership position of the speaker, distances the speaker from politicians in general and increases solidarity with ’non-politicians’, i.e. citizens. The first person plural provides referential ambiguity and enables the speaker to shift among different collective identities.