Narratives of migration through political discourses. The Italian case of Salvini: 2014th European Parliament election - 2018th national political election

Abstract

60 Abstract We are witnessing a critical moment in the history of the European Union. A historical moment in which the extremist-right populist wave is pervading almost all European countries attempting to undermine the fundamental keystones of this union. Although, the sociopolitical context was already unstable because un the latest refugee crisis and the economic recession the rising of these political forces is alimenting misconceptions and social panic between the population breaking the fragile equilibrium of social fabric in many European countries. Italy is currently part of these countries where politicians foment the distinctions between Italians and foreigners. Although the used rhetoric to exaggerate these distinctions is often far from reality (Ambrosini, 2017), rhetoric particularly catchy rhetoric has the ability to shape and reflect cultural dynamics (Starks, and Brown Trinidad, 2007). Therefore, this study main purpose is to investigate political discourse, and analyze the main narratives related to migratory phenomena. More precisely, this work dealt with the analysis of Matteo Salvini’ discourses, as being the leader of the far-right populist party the Lega, used during the electoral campaign for the European Parliament election of 2014th and also during the political election of 2018th.