ABSTRACT

Gendered discourses in Ghana’s politics are not new. Unlike previous years, however, the gendered discourse in the 2020 election was different because the leading opposition party (NDC) selected a female running mate. Considering that the seat has been rotating between the NDC and NPP since 1992, Ghanaians foresaw a “real” possibility of having a female vice president. With data from online news articles and social media, this paper examines the nature of the gendered discourse that characterised Ghana’s 2020 election. We focus on stylistic devices and other linguistic strategies used with a view to understanding how gender either took a centre stage or “seeped” through the political discourse. Underpinned by Ambivalent Sexism Theory and Post-structuralist Discourse Analysis, findings indicate that although the running mate was sometimes represented in ways that challenge traditional gender stereotypes, she was largely represented in stereotypical ways, thereby corroborating findings from other parts of the world. These were done through devices like allusion, sarcasm, simile, metaphor and rhetorical questions. Findings also show that although it was the NDC that actively played the “gender card” to galvanise support, the NPP also played it to dissuade voters from voting for the NDC.

摘要

加纳政治中的性别话语并不新鲜。然而，与往年不同的是，2020 年大选中的性别话语有所不同，因为主要反对党 (NDC) 选择了一位女性竞选伙伴。考虑到该席位自 1992 年以来一直在 NDC 和 NPP 之间轮换，加纳人预见到有一位女性副总统的“真实”可能性。本文利用来自在线新闻文章和社交媒体的数据，审视了作为加纳 2020 年大选特征的性别话语的性质。我们专注于文体设备和其他语言策略，以了解性别如何成为中心舞台或通过政治话语“渗透”。以矛盾的性别歧视理论和后结构主义话语分析为基础，调查结果表明，虽然竞选伙伴有时以挑战传统性别陈规定型观念的方式出现，但她在很大程度上以陈规定型方式出现，从而证实了世界其他地区的调查结果。这些是通过典故、讽刺、明喻、隐喻和反问句等手段完成的。调查结果还显示，虽然是NDC主动打出“性别牌”来争取支持，但NPP也打出“性别牌”来劝阻选民投票给NDC。