Critical Discourse Analysis of Ayatollah Bayat Zanjani's Condolence Message Following the Shah Cheragh Terrorist Incident

 
The aim of this study is to critically analyze the condolence message of Ayatollah Bayat Zanjani on the occasion of the Shah Cheragh terrorist incident. This message is selected purposefully due to its issuance under specific political, social, and security conditions of the country, as well as some researchers’ claims about its distinct composition. This study is qualitative in nature and employs a critical approach based on Fairclough's method of discourse analysis.
The results indicate that in this condolence message, descriptive combinations of events are quantitatively abundant (both positive and negative) and qualitatively carry a heavier ideological and emphatic load. However, the author of the message, through the extensive use of descriptive phrases and an over-reliance on referential language in the form of negative verbs, vague pronouns, ambiguous references, etc., seems more intent on describing an undesirable social and political situation in the country rather than explicitly protesting the current state
Based on the interpretation and explanation of this condolence message, however, it can be inferred that although the author sought to condemn the killing of various individuals (without referring to the perpetrators) in all similar incidents (including in Sistan, etc.), the adopted stance essentially lacks a protest nature. The author, by avoiding direct confrontation with those who are in “power”, seems to position himself in a neutral stance.