APRIL MOVEMENT AND EDITORIAL REPRESENTATION: A RHETORICAL READING OF THE KATHMANDU POST AND THE HIMALAYAN TIMES

Abstract

The Popular Movement of April 2006 (April Movement) is a productive Nepal in terms of the diversity of textual representations. s a productive textual representations. ovement take note of the factual and historical dimensions such as the events preceding and during the mass uprising from 6 to 24 April. A number of them analyze the roots of the dimensions such as the events preceding and during the mass uprising from 6 to 24 nt from both historical and sociological perspectives. Quite a few credit one or the other political actor for a of independent Majority of the texts on the movement take note of the factual and historical dimensions such as the events preceding and during the mass uprising from 6 to 24 April. A number of them analyze the roots of the movement from both historical and sociological perspectives. Quite a few credit one or the other political actor , while other texts acknowledge the contribution of independent media as one of the influential factors for the success of the movement. critical studies have been done on the discursive aspects of textual representations, and no extensive academic study of from a rhetorical perspective attempted so far. The present work seeks to fulfi by carrying out rhetorical criticism of the political editorial TKP) and The Himalayan Times (THT), the two leading in English published during the heightened political Taking account of the political events between 23 November 2005 and 30 May 2006 (191 days), which is the period involving the pre-movement, sociological perspectives. Quite a few credit one or the other political actor resultant leadership, while other texts acknowledge the media as one of the influential factors Only limited critical movement’s textual representations, and no extensive from a rhetorical perspective dearth of scholarship by carrying out rhetorical criticism of the political The Kathmandu Post (TKP) corporate newspapers in English of 2005 and 2006. Taking and 30 May 2006 (191 days studies have been done on the discursive aspects of the study of media texts seeks to fulfill such editorials of two leading published during the heightened political happenings between 23 November 2005 movement, movement and post-movement phases, the study applies Fantasy Theme Criticism as the principal rhetorical perspective to read altogether 214 editorials and their corresponding exigencies. In this process, the study explicates several milestones of the April Movement including substantive discussions on the actors, actions, settings, guiding factors, popular metaphors, main achievements, representative visions and rhetorical communities sharing these visions. This study identifies and analyzes eight representative narratives about the April Movement, each including a character type embodying an important movement actor. The actors are the Seven-Parties Alliance, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the royal regime, the security forces, the judiciary, Nepali people, the media and the international community. Each actor is seen to represent a set of rhetorical visions shared by related discourse communities and sanctioned by contextual and universal legitimizing principles. The study then explicates the April Movement in the rhetorical phases of resurgence, revitalization and restructuring. The study further helps clarify the application of some of the major theoretical constructs of Fantasy Theme Criticism and Symbolic Convergence Theory. The study’s major inferences relate to the role of the two newspapers, which signified their persistent presence and scrutiny during the political transitions of 2005 and 2006. The eight narratives, eight sets of rhetorical visions and three phases of movement underline this aspect of the papers’ contribution in representing Nepal’s history. Also, the main rhetorical dimension of the newspapers involves their advocacy of freedom of expression and the duty to disseminate truth. Likewise, the papers take a position characterized as objectivity with clear sense of involvement and open admonition for the main political parties to undergo change and redemption. Broadly, TKP and THT show deep belief in democracy, rule of law and freedom of expression, and lend clear discourse support to the adherents of pluralism, good governance and peaceful living. They seek to establish a trust on popular sovereignty and internal consolidation, and voice resistance to any kind of external interferences. They have a concern for promoting national ethos, which would ensure self-respect through economic uplift, national unity and political convergence and, therefore, enhance patriotism, sovereignty and good governance in Nepal. Thus, with their sustained emphasis on the inevitability of peaceful transition from autocracy and heightened armed insurgency to democracy and conflict settlement, the papers defined their rhetorical position as activist change agents.