“We are at war against a powerful, implacable enemy”: Sebastián Piñera’s discourses and the popular uprising in Chile

Abstract

Drawing from critical political discourse analysis, this article aimed to investigate the 46 official speeches by president Sebastián Piñera delivered one month before and after widespread social protests that started on October 18, 2019 in Chile. Using computer-assisted complementary methods, we contrasted and interpreted keywords, evaluations, metaphors, and themes, along with situational and social elements. Our findings demonstrate a dramatic change in presidential speeches since October 18, when they shifted from international economic and environmental issues to the endorsement of security forces at the national level, along with a continuity of a discourse of war directed towards the public space, to culminate in an inclusive discourse on agreement, the new Constitution, and social rights.