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A Corpus-Based Analysis of the Language of Satyagraha in Selected Speeches by "Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King"

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Last updated: 25 Dec 2024

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Abstract

      More than six decades after Gandhi's assassination, his philosophy of nonviolence, encapsulated in the concept of Satyagraha, continues to resonate globally. Gandhi, credited with coining the term Satyagraha, based his philosophy on the ancient Sanskrit concept of ahimsa, integrating truth, nonviolence, and suffering as its core elements. King, profoundly inspired by Gandhi, adopted Satyagraha as a foundation for the Civil Rights Movement. This paper explores the lexical choices and semantic links in three selected speeches by each of Gandhi and King, employing a corpus-based analysis. The study employs the K-words corpus software tool, contrasting the speeches against the COCA corpus, to identify and categorize frequent words. The analysis focuses on the three main elements of Satyagraha: Truth, Nonviolence, and Suffering. Research questions addressed include identifying keywords in each speaker's speeches and determining the most frequent lexical choices in their discourse. In an era where nonviolence needs reframing to align with contemporary challenges, this study aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of how language, specifically in the speeches of Gandhi and King, played a pivotal role in advocating for justice, equality, and peaceful resistance. The analysis aimed to demonstrate how Gandhi and King incorporated Satyagraha in their speeches to advocate for their respective causes, revealing nuanced differences in their religious and cultural orientations. Results showed Gandhi's emphasis on universal religious terms and general expressions of suffering which suggests a global perspective on his cause, appealing to a broader audience. On the other hand, King's focus on specific details in suffering aligns with his advocacy for racial equality within the context of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. These findings underscore the adaptability of Satyagraha to diverse contexts, reflecting the leaders' strategic choices in language to advance their distinct social and political agendas.

DOI

10.21608/herms.2024.393357

Keywords

Satyagraha, Ahimsa, nonviolence, Corpus-based Analysis

Authors

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Mariam

Last Name

Arafa

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Affiliation

Assistant Lecturer - Faculty of Languages Modern Sciences and Arts University

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Volume

13

Article Issue

3

Related Issue

51229

Issue Date

2024-07-01

Receive Date

2024-11-24

Publish Date

2024-07-01

Page Start

41

Page End

74

Print ISSN

2090-8555

Online ISSN

2974-4695

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https://hermes.journals.ekb.eg/article_393357.html

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https://hermes.journals.ekb.eg/service?article_code=393357

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هرمس

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https://hermes.journals.ekb.eg/

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A Corpus-Based Analysis of the Language of Satyagraha in Selected Speeches by "Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King"

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Article

Created At

25 Dec 2024