PERSUASIVE LANGUAGE IN LEADERSHIP: ANALYSIS OF MR IMRAN KHAN’S INTERVIEW

Abstract

Political leaders usually remain connected with the people to fulfill their political goals. For this purpose, political leaders use persuasive language as a tool and that is noticeable in political campaigns and debates where persuasive language plays a pivotal role. The persuasive language of politicians serves as a strong tool to manipulate and exploit the ideological assumptions and opinions of the people for political benefits. The main objective of this study is to examine the persuasive language of the ex-prime minister of Pakistan Mr. Imran Khan how tactfully he uses persuasive language to manipulate the minds of the masses for personal political benefits. Two international spoken texts of Mr. Imran have been selected such as the 1st spoken text (interview) of Mr. Imran with "CNN" (Text 1); and the 2nd spoken text (interview) with "France 24" (Text 2);. 1st Interview is given to CNN, with Becky Anderson on 07/11/2022 (Text 1), and 2nd interview to France 24, with Marc Perelman on 16/11/2022 (Text 2). The researcher has employed Fairclough's (1995) 3D model in this qualitative study to uncover the persuasive techniques employed by Mr. Imran in his persuasive language. The present study explores the persuasive elements used in Mr. Imran's spoken texts to reveal his persuasive strategies. The findings reveal that Mr. Imran's language as a leader is fully coated with persuasion. He manipulates the mind through persuasive language using emotional expressions, reiterations, personal nouns, pronouns, allusions, and rhetoric’s. Mind control and context control is a common feature of his persuasive language. The research is significant for future researchers because it creates awareness in people regarding the persuasive strategies of politicians such as Mr. Imran to manipulate the opinion of the masses in his favor.