The ''War on Terror'' Narrative: Discourse and Intertextuality in the Construction and Contestation of Sociopolitical Reality (Oxford Studies in Sociolinguistics)

The War on Terror Narrative analyzes three types of data—presidential speeches, U.S. media discourse, and focus group interviews—to provide a longitudinal and holistic study of the formation, circulation, and contestation of the Bush administration's narrative about the "war on terror." The narrative sustains, in Foucault's terms, a "regime of truth" by placing boundaries around what can meaningfully be said and understood about the subject. Adam Hodges illustrates that even as social actors resist the narrative and the policy it entails, they appropriate its language to be heard and understood. While this often works to strengthen the narrative, discourse is inevitably reshaped as it enters into new contexts. This recontextualization allows for the introduction of new meanings, and therein lies the potential for resistance and social transformation. Hodges argues that applying ideas on intertextuality to the analysis of political discourse is central to understanding the way micro-level discursive action contributes to macro-level cultural narratives like the Bush "War on Terror" narrative. Contents 8 Preface 10 Acknowledgments 12 1. Introduction 16 2. The Characterization of 9/11 and America’s Response to Terrorism 31 3. The Narrative’s Part-Whole Textual Interdependence 54 4. The Construction of Al Qaeda and Iraq as Linked Antagonists 77 5. Intertextual Series: Reproduction and Resistance in the Media 97 6. Talking Politics: The Narrative’s Reception among College Students 125 7. Whose Vietnam? Discursive Competition over the Vietnam Analogy 146 8. Conclusion 166 Appendix A. Corpus of Presidential Speeches 174 Appendix B. Transcription Conventions for Presidential Speeches 177 Appendix C. Transcription Conventions for Focus Group Interviews 178 Appendix D. Media Discourse Data 179 References 181 Index 189 A 189 B 189 C 190 D 190 E 190 F 191 G 191 H 191 I 191 J 192 K 192 L 192 M 192 N 192 O 192 P 192 Q 193 R 193 S 193 T 193 U 193 V 193 W 193 Y 193 Z 193 The "War on Terror" Narrative provides a longitudinal and holistic study of the formation, circulation, and contestation of the Bush administration's narrative about the "war on terror."