Ideologemes as a Speech Influence Tool in Public Discourse of the Spanish Monarchy

In recent years, in political linguistics, intercultural communication, sociology and other humanities, ideologemes have been widely studied. In many studies, they are often regarded as a worldview setting, expressed in a linguistic form, as a cognitive-pragmatic tool to promote ideology, and as an effective way to influence public consciousness in political communication. In any public political speech, ideologemes are a means of categorizing the world and translating value coordinates – a certain axiological model in the public mind. Ideologemes usually convey the main ideological and value related orientations of a society. In crucial moments, ideologemes can be a tool for reshaping the public opinion and forming the “right” attitude on the part of the speaker. They are also widely used in various subcultures that try to stand out. In other words, ideologemes help form axiological categories, whose analysis is necessary when describing the mentality of a particular society and its accepted behavior patterns. This article focuses on the ideologemes of the Spanish King Felipe VI, who, like his predecessor Juan Carlos I, is the embodiment of the traditional Spanish mentality. We have analyzed the King’s speeches not only from the point of view of their content, ideologically and politically speaking, but also within the pragmatic framework of the selected speeches, looking at the socio-political context and the addressee. The analysis has shown that the frequent use of ideologemes helps the leader promote the ideas of national unity, justice, sacrifice, international cooperation, etc. Due to the Catalonian separatism, the national unity narrative is widely used by the monarch and plays a very important role in modern Spain. With the help of ideologemes, taking into account the multicultural Spanish society, which was deeply fractured, the King conveys ideas about (a) the political foundations of the state, (b) basic values, (c) the national character, and (d) the current socio-political situation in Spain. On the international stage, the main functions of ideologemes are (a) to proclaim the need for international cooperation, (b) to create a positive political image of Spain as a reliable partner, and (c) to declare commitment to the basic principles of democracy.