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In:Thinking Politically: Cognitive linguistic insights into political discourse
Edited by Anastasios Vogiatzis
[Figurative Thought and Language 22] 2027
► pp. 200–219

Chapter 9
A “MEGA” presidency

The figurative framing of the EU in Viktor Orbán’s rhetoric during the 2024 Hungarian Council Presidency

 | Corvinus University of Budapest
 | Corvinus University of Budapest
 | Corvinus University of Budapest
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
Abstract
The Presidency of the Council of the European Union, typically a neutral role wherein member states function as “honest brokers”, was assumed by Hungary on July 1, 2024. Given Hungary’s contentious relationship with the EU and its government’s Eurosceptic stance, this raised questions about how Hungary-EU affairs would be communicated during the country’s six-month term. This chapter employs discursive approaches to metaphor and metonymy to examine the term Brüsszel (“Brussels”) in Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s speeches and interviews during Hungary’s Presidency. Our findings show that the EU is predominantly represented as a supranational authority and an entity that abuses its power over member states. Moreover, portraying the EU as Hungary’s political adversary opens a politicized discourse dimension in Hungary-EU relations. The analysis suggests that figurative framing facilitates antagonistic positioning within a role traditionally perceived as impartial and administrative. Metaphor and metonymy, therefore, enable a nuanced, discursively managed form of politicization under conditions of institutional constraint.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.In rotation: The role of the EU council presidency
  • 3.Hungary in the EU
    • 3.1Metaphors of a misalignment: Hungary-EU tensions in discourse
  • 4.Corpus and methodology
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Author queries
  • Notes
  • References
References (45)
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