A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF TEXTUAL METAFUNCTION IN DONALD TRUMP'S INSTAGRAM POSTS

Abstrak

Social media has become a potent political communication tool that allows leaders to interact with their followers and influence public opinion. Instagram is a powerful tool for political branding and persuasion because it provides a distinctive blend of textual and visual components. Using Donald Trump's Instagram postings as a case study, this research investigates how his communication techniques are influenced by textual metafunctions as suggested by Halliday's Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL). Although Trump's usage of Twitter has received a lot of scholarly attention, this study emphasizes the textual structure and coherence of his Instagram postings, an area that has received less attention.A qualitative content analysis of a subset of posts from Trump's presidency and post-presidency is used in the study. The study shows how Trump strategically employs linguistic and semiotic resources to support his political narrative by looking at themes, rhemes, and how they interact with visual semiotics. Key findings show that finite verbs and rhemes provide his statements clarity and consistency, while unmarked themes like "Seniors" and "Kamala Harris" act as focal points. By combining text and images, he strengthens his political identity and successfully engages his audience while also enhancing the performative and persuasive aspects of his posts. This study adds to our expanding knowledge of the function of digital media in modern political communication. It illustrates how thematic patterns and literary metafunctions play a crucial role in influencing public opinion and political narratives. The results highlight Instagram's importance as a vibrant forum for political discussion and provide fresh perspectives on how social media and contemporary political tactics interact.