Edelman Constructing The Political Sphere Analysis

In the politically motivated masterpiece Constructing the Political Spectacle, political scientist Murray Edelman argues that, politicians play with ambiguous language and false constructs to manipulate public ideology on current events. The author illustrates that by doing so, politicians can sway public opinion on matters that align with the goals of politicians. This analysis illustrates how President Trump utilized the elements of Edelman’s political spectacle in the 2018 State of the Union Address. This analysis identifies how President Trump constructs problems and enemies from within our country by illustrating how he plays on the opposing viewpoints of liberals and conservatives. By focusing on polarizing issues such as immigration, …show more content…
By defining how Edelman views these concepts and listing examples that are given in the State of the Union it should be evident on how President Trump used these concepts. According to Edelman, condensation symbols have been used throughout time to stir the emotions of those listening. Condensation symbols can be almost anything. Most condensation symbols today are short catch phrases such as ‘me too’ or ‘black lives matter’ movements. The use of catch phrases or visual symbols have a way of hitting at our emotions by using memories, feelings and …show more content…
Throughout the speech Trump listed examples such as the trade deficit, poor infrastructure and the destruction of American values. With each example given, Trump outlined how America has fallen from its once glorious ‘silver eagle’ status. America has always been the country that the world looks up to as being at the forefront of humanistic values such as innovation, integrity, free speech and religion. Trumps ideas of how America has fallen evokes a concern for what most citizens’ see as true American principle and doctrine. Trumps use of language to alarm the public is in general an attempt to illustrate the loss of American