"Jacques Chirac as presented by Le Canard enchaîné. Derision and irreverence as mechanisms of social correction"

ANA PEDRAZZINI

Aberdeen

Simposio; 7th International Summer School and Symposium on Humour and Laughter.; 2007

International Society for Humor Studies

This study shows the variety of techniques satirical French newspaper Le Canard enchaîné tangles to construct former President Jacques Chirac's image giving rise to a rhetoric of derision. With irreverence, Canard enchaîné denunciates the faults and excesses of politicians assuming by this fact a role of social corrector. Puns and antiphrastic titles, perverted proverbs and expressions, images or sentences with double meaning, allusions to cultural products and unexpected analogies are some of the most common methods. It may not be its originality, but its subtlety and the way these methods are combined that characterize Canard Enchaîné's humour. We study how Chirac's image has evolved during his two terms focusing on the construction of the personage?s traits, which have been divided into four categories (Competence, Integrity, Reliability, Charisma and Empathy). We centre our analysis on three political periods: the beginning of his first term, in 1995; National Assembly dissolution decided by the President and the legislative elections that followed, in 1997; and the European Constitution referendum, in 2005. We will examine if a correlation can be established between the use of humoristic and satirical techniques and the negative personality traits discussed.