Semiotic resources and issue framing: multimodal discourse analysis of Theresa May’s inaugural and resignation speeches

Theresa May’s inaugural and resignation speeches respectively mark the beginning and end of her premiership. When making her inaugural speech May was well supported by the general public, but her resignation speech was made as she stepped down from the position of Prime Minister under great political and public pressure. This paper applies multimodal discourse analysis to both her inaugural and resignation speeches, exploring how semiotic resources are used to frame issues to achieve multiple communicative effects. It is found that: (i) multiple modes, including verbal, visual, and vocal, are manipulated to frame the issue of social justice—in relation to May’s commitments in the inaugural speech, and concerning achievements in the resignation speech; (ii) regarding Brexit, multiple modes are employed to express confidence and sadness in failure in the two speeches; and (iii) both speeches frame the issue of national unity, emphasizing the significance of this issue. The same issues, but with different frames, produce different effects. We further find that the verbal mode plays a dominant role in issue framing, while other modes assume different supportive functions. They are interwoven and integrated to maximize the effect of such speeches.