Bowing out in style. A critical discourse analysis of Margaret Thatcher's and Tony Blair's farewell addresses

Abstract

This thesis is an analysis of Margaret Thatcher's and Tony Blair's last addresses as British Prime Ministers as well as the reception these farewell speeches got in a selection of five British national newspaper editorials. My hypothesis is that Thatcher and Blair try to cement their legacies through the language they use and the power of definition – and that the two speeches mirror each other given the speakers contrasting political stances. I make use of a Critical Discourse Analytic framework to decipher Thatcher's and Blair's verbal fight for their post-political reputation. Secondly, I suggest that media language has changed considerably over the last twenty years and that the more person-oriented, compressed style of tabloidese combined with showbiz imagery has become the preferred norm when covering politics today.