Register Analysis and Linguistic Manipulation in the Murderers of the True Crime Series ―I Am a Killer‖ »
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Trabajo de Fin de Grado «Register Analysis and Linguistic Manipulation in the Murderers of the true crime series ―I am a killer‖ » Autora: Lucía Elena Cano Gómez Tutora: Mª Carmen Merino Ferrada Grado en Estudios Ingleses Curso académico: 2019/2020 Presentación: 02/09/2020 FACULTAD DE FILOSOFÍA Y LETRAS INDEX ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………………1 INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………..2 1. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK………………………………………………………...3 1.1. DISCOURSE ANALYSIS……………………………………………………………3 1.2.REGISTER…………………………………………………………………………….6 1.3. FORENSIC LINGUISTICS………………………………………………………….10 1.3.1. THE LINGUISTICS OF LYING………………………………………………12 1.3.2. LIES AND DISCOURSE ANALYSIS………………………………………..13 2. METHODOLOGY OF THE ANALYSIS……………………………………………….18 3. PRACTICAL ANALYSIS: REGISTER…………………………………………………19 3.1. SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS...……………………………………………...............19 3.1.1. ACCOMPANIED KILLERS ………..………………………………………27 3.1.2. LONE KILLERS ……………………………………………………………28 3.2. LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS……..……………………………………………………29 3.2.1. ACCOMPANIED KILLERS‘ DATA……………………………………….29 3.2.2. LONE KILLERS‘ DATA……………………………...................................34 3.3. FUNCTIONAL INTERPRETATION………………………………………………..40 3.3.1. ACCOMPANIED KILLERS‘ CORPUS……………………………….……40 3.3.2. LONE KILLERS‘ CORPUS…………………………………………………45 3.4. COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS……………………………………………………….50 3.5. THE LINGUISTIC MANIPULATION OF THE REALITY: RESULTS…………...60 4. CONCLUSIONS………………………………………………………………………….65 BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………………………….68 APPENDIX…………………………………………………………………………………...75 5.1 LINGUISTIC FEATURES THAT MIGHT BE INVESTIGATED IN A REGISTER ANALYSIS…………………………………………………………………………….75 5.2. LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF THE ACCOMPANIED KILLERS‘ DATA…………79 5.3. LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF THE LONE KILLERS‘ DATA………………………84 5.4. LINGUISTIC COINCIDENCES IN THE WORDS USED…………………………..90 5.5. LINGUISTIC DIFFERENCES IN THE WORDS USED…………………………….93 5.6. INTERVIEWS ON THE ACCOMPANIED KILLERS………………………………98 5.7. INTERVIEWS ON THE LONE KILLERS…………………………………………..124 ABSTRACT This project will analyze the linguistic features that characterize the speech of the killers that participate in the documentary series ―I am a killer‖ which, through interviews, the killers speak about the events that triggered the murders that condemned them to the death penalty. We will divide the speakers into two groups, those who committed the crimes alone (lone killers) and those who committed them in company (accompanied killers) with the aim of checking whether or not they use similar linguistic features as well as the way in which they manipulate the reality through the use of language. To do this, we will carry out a register analysis in the terms proposed by Biber and Conrad (2009) in which we will analyze the situational context of these interviews, the frequent and pervasive linguistic features in both corpora and the functional interpretation of the linguistic data in terms of the situational analysis proposed. Key words: discourse analysis, register, forensic linguistics, linguistic manipulation, killers. RESUMEN Este trabajo analizará los rasgos lingüísticos que caracteriza al discurso de los asesinos que participan en la serie documental ―I am a killer‖. En la cual, mediante entrevistas, los asesinos contarán los sucesos que desencadenaron el asesinato que los condenó a la pena de muerte. Dividiremos a los asesinos en dos grupos, aquellos que cometieron los crímenes solos (asesinos solitarios) y aquellos que los cometieron con acompañantes (asesinos acompañados) con el propósito de comprobar si usan o no elementos lingüísticos similares así como la forma en la que manipulan la realidad a través del lenguaje. Para ello, realizaremos un análisis de registro siguiendo la propuesta de Biber y Conrad (2009) en la que analizaremos el contexto situacional de estas entrevistas, los rasgos frecuentes y generales en los dos corpus y la interpretación funcional de los datos lingüísticos relacionados con el análisis situacional propuesto. Palabras clave: análisis del discurso, registro, lingüística forense, manipulación lingüística, asesinos. 1 INTRODUCTION This project consists in the study of the different linguistic elements that are commonly used by a very special group of users, the protagonists of the true crime series ―I am a killer‖ in a number of interviews concerning the murders that they had committed and the surrounding circumstances. Nowadays, we can find a great number of studies that are related to Discourse Analysis, as it is a multidisciplinary field that studies the relationship between language and the context in which it is used. Although there are numerous studies related to political, journalistic, and audiovisual discourse, there are not many related to the analysis of discourse and language used by killers. These studies usually focus on serial killers, their psychological aspects and whether the murders were planned or not. The most prominent references that we have found that are related to the linguistic aspects are Hancock, Woodworth and Porter (2011) and the studies by Roger Shuy (2005). This group of killers is interesting for many reasons and therefore many questions come up, such as whether different types of killers have similar backgrounds, whether they talk about the same topics or whether they use similar linguistic patterns, in addition to other questions such as: the way in which they employ language, could it be classified as a particular register or as a specific language variety? And finally, do they reflect the exact truth in their statement or they linguistically manipulate the reality? These are some of the questions that arise, as the linguistic features that we use depend on the context and the situation of our communicative exchanges. Killers have always existed, so the analysis of the linguistic features as well as the subjects they talked about, and the way in which they employ language to achieve very specific aims, allow us to anticipate a pattern. Our main aim in this study is to find out which linguistic patterns, grammatical and lexical, form the register that the protagonists of these interviews use. In order to achieve this goal, we will employ the register analysis proposed by Biber and Conrad (2009), as we intend to explain not just the linguistic features used but the situational context of the killers and the function of these linguistic features in relation to it. To provide an analysis in depth, we have divided the killers into two groups, depending on whether they committed the crimes alone or in company, with the aim of studying whether the two groups 2 of killers employ similar linguistic patterns. Therefore, once we have analyzed the killers, we can compare the results we have obtained, focusing on the differences. And then, we would check whether they linguistically manipulate the reality by comparing what the speakers said to other participants that appeared in the episodes. We have divided this work into four sections. In the first section, we explain what Discourse Analysis is, focusing on the analysis of register and its two main perspectives, the first one proposed by Halliday and Hasan (1964) and the second one, on which we will base on our analysis, by Biber and Conrad (2009). In section two, we will expound on Forensic Linguistics, as we will relate discourse analysis with the linguistic manipulation of the reality as well as falsehood. We will also revise the linguistics of lying, as lies are formed by semantics, syntax and pragmatics. Our third section corresponds to the practical part, which is composed by the analysis of register, formed by the situational analysis, the linguistic analysis of the two groups and the functional interpretation of them. Furthermore, in this section, we will make a comparison between the results obtained in the previous analysis. In the fourth and final section, we will identify which one of the two groups appears to be more likely to linguistically manipulate the reality. In the last section, we will narrate the conclusions we have obtained, emphasizing the more important concepts and the results obtained. 1. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 1.1.DISCOURSE ANALYSIS Discourse Analysis focuses on the knowledge of language beyond sentences, phrases, clauses and words that are needed for communication to be successful. It examines how the use of language is influenced by the social and cultural contexts, as well as the relationship between participants and how language has an effect upon social identities and relations (Paltridge, 2006). Zelling Harris was the first to introduce the term discourse analysis in 1952; therefore, he is considered the father of this discipline. He wanted to examine the language beyond the level of the sentence, and also the linguistic and non linguistic behavior. His aim was to describe ―how language features are distributed within texts and the ways in which they are combined in particular kinds and styles of texts‖ (Paltridge, 2006: 2). Harris realized that there were 3 typical ways of using language in particular situations not just in terms of meanings but also in terms of linguistic features. Therefore, the central interest of the Discourse Analysis is examining those meanings and how they are used in language (Paltridge, 2006). As Van Dijk (1985) explained Discourse Analysis is an old and a new discipline, as its origins can be traced back to the study of language, public speech and even literature. He located the origin of modern discourse analysis in the middle 1960‘s, as the first publications of structural