A COMPARATIVE CDA OF NATIONAL ANTHEMS: CONSTRUCTING UNITY AND CONFLICT THROUGH LANGUAGE

Abstract

The present study endeavors to examine the key linguistic patterns and underlying ideologies present in the national anthems of both developed and developing countries. As the study is qualitative in nature, the analysis has utilized Fairclough's three-dimensional model of critical discourse analysis, which encompasses textual, discursive, and social practice levels. The sample has a total of ten national anthems, with an equal distribution of five anthems from both developed and developing countries on the basis of stratified random sampling. Developed countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Australia, and developing countries involving Pakistan, India, Nepal, the Maldives, and Bhutan, have formed the data for the current study. The selection of these anthems is based on their respective scores on the Human Development Index (HDI). The results, which are displayed in tabular form, have demonstrated that both developed and developing countries are similar in conveying the common notions of national unity, identity, national pride, and religious faith in God. Contrastively, developed countries’ national anthems revolve around the ideologies of ‘exceptionalism, monarchism, strength, oneness, unity, rights, freedom, and civic nationalism’ to reflect their unique socio-political and economic stability, while developing countries tend to prioritize ideologies like respect for national symbols, unity within diversity, and religious or cultural identities like ‘Umma Nationalism and Bhutanese Buddhism’. The results indicate that developed countries are free, strong, stable, and unique nations, while developing countries are culturally and religiously bound and struggling for progressivity. This study essentially underscores the influence of economic development, historical or cultural influences, and geopolitical factors on the language choices used in national anthems, thereby significantly enhancing our comprehension of the global landscape.