A Corpus-Assisted Critical Discourse Analysis: Constructions of Identity and Power in Animal Farm by George Orwell

Mazlin Azizan, Nurul Syafiqah Mohd Nasir and Nazira Osman
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Mazlin Azizan: Academy of Language Studies, Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Shah Alam
Nurul Syafiqah Mohd Nasir: Academy of Language Studies, Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Shah Alam
Nazira Osman: Academy of Language Studies, Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Shah Alam

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 2025, vol. 9, issue 24, 588-596

Abstract: This study incorporates a corpus-assisted Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) methodology to analyse the way language in George Orwell's Animal Farm structure’s identity and authority. Following Van Dijk's theory of ideological polarization and Fairclough's three-dimensional model, the study focuses on how stylistic components such as slogans, repetition, and collocations can reinforce binary distinctions between groups and ideological assertions. Given that Animal Farm has been extensively studied via political and allegorical viewpoints, little research has been put toward exploring the discursive significance of Orwell's linguistic choices in shaping both power and identity. By including AntConc corpus tools into the analysis, the study strengthens CDA clarity and empirical support. The findings suggest that phrases and collocations may disclose systematic approaches for building in-group legitimacy (the pigs) and out-group deviance (the other animals). The present study contributes a methodologically distinct contribution to the structure of sociolinguistics by researching how language is used to define identity and power in a fictional narrative. It indicates how corpus-assisted CDA assists in helping researchers comprehend the ideological aspects of discourse and how they intersect with social power relations. Moreover, the findings emphasize fiction's relevance as an acceptable domain for sociolinguistic study, and CDA may disclose the ideological mechanisms inherent to the narrative. The study provides both practical and theoretical additions to the fields of applied linguistics and the arts and humanities.

Date: 2025
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