Here You Go, Sit or Lie Down? A Look at the Rhetoric of a Leader

Sometimes he calls his enemy "fool," at other times he refers to his rival as "ignoble." Occasionally, he labels a politician as "shameless," and sometimes he designates a country as a "rabid and impure dog of the region." At times, he ends his furious statements with "to hell!" and emphasizes that someone is "making a mistake!"... There are also moments when he elicits laughter from the audience with a smirk and phrases like "the worthless government." When it comes to criticizing his critics or attacking a phenomenon referred to as "the enemy," the most powerful figure in the Iranian government has never been known for a soft tongue; however, for some time now, the use of derogatory and insulting language in the statements of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has picked up pace. When did these words find their way into the rhetoric of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic? What is the reason for their repetition in recent months? Is he pursuing a specific strategy in using this tone? And to what extent is the use of such language common in the governmental discourse of the Islamic Republic? This week's discussion on the program "The Sixth Hour" focused on the tone, rhetoric, and vocabulary of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, featuring the audience of Radio Farda and Morad Vaisi, a colleague of Radio Farda who has conducted extensive studies on Ayatollah Khamenei and has also produced a radio documentary about his life.