The usage of the word oligarch has been growing rapidly in Swedish newspapers since the fall of the Soviet Union. In this study, I will examine the way Swedish newspapers have been using the word, in what I asses as a biased way. Previous research has shown that the word is applicable in a much wider space, and that other countries or parts of the world contains cases of oligarchs. The word oligarch is actually old, it comes from ancient Greece and its renowned philosophers, originally made up to describe when the power of a democracy lies in the hands of only a few. Today, it seems that the word has been heavily associated (almost exclusively), with Russian businessmen. Many whom made their fortune during the turmoil between the collapse of the Soviet Union and the republic of Russia switching from a communist economy to a capitalistic state. There lies certain power in actions, as so in words. To misinterpret, applicate or to use words and situations with the intention of self-advocacy could be dangerous, especially when done so by a force capable of influencing the minds of the masses. The words we use affect our way of interpreting things, in turn, how people interpret, think and conversate about topics and such are called discourse. Critical discourse analysis works as a theory, or method to critically examine the ways that we discuss about these so-called discourses, and how the debate about the topics develop in our society. Ultimately, by looking into the way three big and influential Swedish newspapers reported on the topic of oligarchs for almost thirty years, we will see how the discourse of the oligarchs develop. This study will work as an insight into the actual discourse and shed light on how institutions such as our news reporting need to be consistently checked in order to be held accountable before their presentation. It is important as it affects the way that we think and interact with each other. Ultimately, from a historical perspective, active discourses like these are things that can put dirty stains on our history. Instead of keeping them alive, we should remind ourselves of our preconceptions, to avoid further alienation amongst people.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:sh-45646 |
| Date | January 2021 |
| Creators | Calvo, Ruben |
| Publisher | Södertörns högskola, Historia |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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