Reagan at Westminster by Rowland Robert C.;Jones John M.;

Author:Rowland, Robert C.;Jones, John M.;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
Published: 2010-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

DIALECTICAL REVERSAL OF LANGUAGE AND METAPHOR

To this point, we have focused our analysis on the historical argument that Reagan developed and on his use of ultimate definition to undermine collectivist ideologies. To some, our focus on argument and ideology as opposed to language and style may seem odd, given the common view that Reagan’s strength was not so much what he said but how he said it. The idea that his enormous success as the Great Communicator can be attributed to a genial manner learned in his years as an actor in Hollywood is still a common one.94 Our perspective is quite different. We believe that the ultimate power of Reagan’s rhetoric came not merely from his delivery or style or manner but also from his ideas. Reagan certainly had a genial persona, but he also had, at least in relation to the Soviets,a coherent ideological vision.

At Westminster, Reagan’s style not only added to the appeal of his ideas but in fact functioned at the substantive level to support the value of liberal democracy. Reagan’s dominant stylistic strategy was to take the language that advocates of collectivism had used and reverse it in order to subvert the collectivist language system. Earlier, we noted how Reagan subverted the collectivist historical narrative when he argued that the arc of history was moving toward liberal democracy. He used a similar strategy at the level of language systems. For generations, advocates of collectivism had used a variety of metaphors to argue for the inevitable victory of the collectivist cause.95 Advocates of Marxism, as Aune observes in a discussion of Raymond Williams,understood that “metaphors have consequences.”96 Reagan subverted the collectivist language system by using metaphors to argue for the inevitable “defeat” of Marxist-Leninism. In some cases, most notably the “ash-heap of history” reference (49), Reagan simply turned the communist language system against itself.

To accomplish the aim of subverting the collectivist language system,Reagan relied primarily on organic metaphors, which emphasized the natural progression from totalitarianism to freedom, and dialectical metaphors, which emphasized the contrast between the two systems. The most prominent of the metaphors is the reference to democracy as “not a fragile flower” (10, 34) but one that still needed cultivation (34). He also notes that democracy “flourishes in countries with very different cultures” (41). These metaphors emphasize both the power of the democratic ideal and the natural progression in society toward democracy. Any plant that is not fragile will grow and spread if it is properly cultivated. With this metaphor Reagan both reinforced his optimistic vision and emphasized the importance of continued action to cultivate the democratic ideal, for even very hardy plants can die without proper care. He gets at that point when he asks, “Must freedom wither in a quiet, deadening accommodation with totalitarian evil?” (19). The “not a fragile flower” and cultivation metaphors not only link together Reagan’s faith in democracy and optimism but also provide a justification for his defense buildup as well as other actions against the Soviets.

But Reagan also uses an organic metaphor to argue that totalitarianism, unlike democracy, cannot prosper.

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