A Corpus Assisted Positive Discourse Analysis of President Xi Jinping’s Speech at The National Assembly of Pakistan

Abstract

State visits to friendly countries are a contemporary global trend. The speeches of heads of state are analyzed from a variety of angles. Positive discourse analysis of international leaders' speeches has gained prominence, particularly in Pakistan, following the inauguration of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). This 42-billion-dollar project, which was officially launched in 2013, has sparked intense regional and international debate. The study employs corpus-based positive discourse analysis. It is a combination of concordance and appraisal research using Baker's lexical category model. The adjectives associated with lexical items are analyzed from a PDA perspective. Three appraisal resources have been used to evaluate Xi's speech: the attitude system, the engagement system, and the graduation system. Following the analysis, it is discovered that President Xi's speech contains numerous positive resources. He strives to build a brotherly relationship with his audience based on mutual equality, respect, love, and strategic partnership. President Xi used language that demonstrates increased engagement. The current study applies positive discourse analysis to the speeches of the Chinese president, opening up new avenues for appraisal theory research.