Ideology on the Headlines of Martial Law: Transitivity Analysis

University of Southeastern Philippines

Republic of the Philippines
College of Arts and Sciences Graduate Studies
Approaches to Discourse Development
Presented by: John Steve Sosobrado

Abstract

This study is an investigation using transitivity analysis on the news headlines on the

declaration of martial law dated on May 23, 2017 to August 30, 2017. The purpose of this study

is to discover the ideologies embedded in the headlines and expose its social implications

through critically examining each verb clauses using Halliday’s Systemic Functional

Linguistics. The corpora of the study were taken from numerous sources such as New York

Times, CNN Philippines, HRW org, CNBC, Forbes, the Atlantic, MindaNews, Interaksyon,

etc. which were taken online. The study reveled that the dominant processes observed among

all the headlines were Verbal and Mental Functions. It shows that there were lexical items

connoting negative implications towards the issue. The writers vividly focused on the sayer

and highly contextualize the verbiage which is the martial law. There was a headline which

were creatively constructed to hide negative meaning. Mostly the headlines observed were very

much constructed not to inform people but to state of a possible threat to the people of what

the president has declared since majority of them used transitive verbs indicating a direct action

of the doer. It is indeed very important that Filipinos should be critical about social and political

issues as well as not be blinded on what the news is all about because there were important

details of the issue that were filtered as well as crafted to provide negative implications to

readerships.
Rationale

The term discourse is used in numerous ways, also in diverse functions for a long time

(Bloor and Bloor, 2013). It is described as what the author means through a text and what a

text actually means to a reader. Definitely, what we try to say through a particular text may

well refer to wider issues such as social and ideological meaning inside, and another concept

referred by discourse is truly based on how text cab be a way of expressing and imposing

specific ways of thinking about the world (Widdowson, 2007). Discourse Analysis clearly

addresses to the analysis of the used language (Brown and Yule, 1983). At this juncture,

contextualizing Philippine politics is very vital to delve with due to countless social issues that

upheave Filipinos’ concerns especially the declaration of Martial Law in the country

specifically in Mindanao.

On the other hand, the prime setter of issue are the journalists where journalism is an

area in which we practice the art of data circulation. Journalists particularly pick out vocabulary

that would transfer peculiar meaning to their intended readers. This study would like to give

light on the unveiling the ideologies behind the news headlines about the declaration of martial

law in the Philippines from various organizations through the lens of transitivity. Knowing that,

opinion leaders, government, newspaper editors, etc. play crucial role in shaping the issue in

the society and setting the boundaries of what is talked about, how is talked about (Taiwo,

2007: 218).

This study would be very beneficial to every Filipinos in understanding ideologies

behind news headlines. This would provide knowledge and develop the critical thinking skills

of readers as well as develop their awareness in ways to decipher meaning through text.

Statement of the Problem

This research aimed to analyze using transitivity analysis the headlines on Martial Law

Declaration in the Philippines last May to June 2017. Specifically, it answers the question:
1. What can be describe in the ideology in the headlines by using transitivity analysis on martial

law declaration?

Theory Base

This study is anchored on the theory of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL). It is the

study of the relationship between language and its functions in social settings. SFG treats

grammar as a meaning-making resource and insists on the interrelation of form and meaning.

This language function is referred to Meta function.

SFG approach to discourse analysis is based on the model of “language as a social

semiotic” outlined in the works of Halliday. Language is used functionally, that is, what is said

depends on what one needs to accomplish. According to Halliday (1985), there are three major

functions of language, namely: the ideational, the textual, and the interpersonal. The ideational

function is the use of language to express content and to communicate information. Where

content is the focus, the emphasis is on transferring information clearly and effectively so that

it can be comprehended quickly and easily. The other two functions of language are the textual

and the interpersonal. The textual function is the use of language to signify discourse. Here,

language becomes text, is related to itself and to its contexts of use, including the preceding

and following text, and the context of situation. The textual can be classified into two structures,

namely: thematic structure (theme and rheme) and Information structure (NEW and GIVEN).

The interpersonal function is the use of language to establish and maintain social relations. This

function involves modalities so that it is related to modus system. The system is signified by

two main elements, namely: mood and residue. Halliday (1985) claims that the three types of

meanings presented in language are not accidental but are necessarily in place because we need

them to perform functions in social life.

The ideational function is divided into two; transitivity and ergativity. In this study, the

newspaper headlines on martial law declaration are analyzed in terms of transitivity because
transitivity handles all the grammatical aspects. Halliday (1981) summarizes transitivity as the

cornerstone of the semantic organization of experience’; it subsumes ‘all participant functions’

and ‘all experiential functions relevant to the syntax of the clause’. Transitivity is usually

considered to be a property of an entire clause (Hopper and Thompson, 1980). It is, broadly,

the notion that an activity is transferred from an agent to a patient. In Halliday’s (1973) terms,

transitivity is a part of the ideational function of the clause. The ideational function represents

processes or experiences: actions, events, processes of consciousness and relations.

There are three components of what Halliday (1994) calls a “transitivity process,”

namely:

- The process itself; what kind of event or state is being described

- Participants in the process; the entities involved in the process, e.g actor, sayer,

senser, goal

- Circumstances associated with the process- specifying when, how, where and why

of the process

Transitivity patterns can reveal the certain worldview framed by the authorial ideology

in a literary text (Fowler, 1986). Clauses represent events and processes of various kinds, and

transitivity aims to make clear how the action is performed, by whom and on what. Transitivity

is an essential tool in the analysis of representation. Different social structures and values

require different patterns of transitivity. Halliday (1994) identifies six process categories in his

system of transitivity which is summarized in the Table presented below.

 Table 1. Halliday (1994) Process Types

The significance of analyzing the data propositions in terms of Participant, Process and

Goal types puts focus on the doers, the actions done and the recipients of the action; in other

words, who is doing what to whom? This analysis relates to the ideational meta function

(Halliday, 1978, Eggins, 2004). The transitivity analysis is applied in the analysis of how Al-

Shabaab is represented in the news headlines and the Process types they are associated with.

Methods

Research Design

Creswell (1994) defined qualitative research as a process of inquiry focusing on

comprehending problems and phenomenon in the society. It is based upon holistic and complex

portrayal of the context illustrated in words and detailed perceptions of informants in a natural

setting.

This research employed a descriptive qualitative research design to unveil the ideology

found in the headlines on the martial declaration in the Philippines specifically last May to June

of the year 2017.

Corpus

This research studied 10 randomly selected headlines from various national and local

news centers which can be found online. Specifically, these are Interaksyon, Mindanews, NYT,

BBC News, PNA, etc. The headlines were about the declaration of martial in the country last

May 23, 2017 to August of the same year.

 Research Procedure

The headlines of the declaration of the martial law was analyzed through the lens of transitivity

analysis framework of Halliday. In conducting the study, the research randomly selected 10

headlines online. Then, these headlines were analyzed through identification of the transitivity

process: material, verbal, behavioral, mental, relational and existential. The researcher

analyzed each verbal clause, and identified the agent, process and the circumstance. Lastly, the

identified processes were tabulated and drawn ideologies out from the gathered and analyzed

data.

Results and Discussion

The following results and discussions are based on Halliday’s theory of Systemic

Functional Linguistics specifically in ideational transitivity analysis. In this study, the

newspaper headlines on martial law declaration are analyzed in terms of transitivity because

transitivity handles all the grammatical aspects. Halliday (1981) summarizes transitivity as the

cornerstone of the semantic organization of experience’; it subsumes ‘all participant functions’

and ‘all experiential functions relevant to the syntax of the clause’. Transitivity is usually

considered to be a property of an entire clause (Hopper and Thompson, 1980). It is, broadly,

the notion that an activity is transferred from an agent to a patient. In Halliday’s (1973) terms,

transitivity is a part of the ideational function of the clause. The ideational function represents

processes or experiences: actions, events, processes of consciousness and relations.

Moreover, transitivity patterns can reveal the certain worldview framed by the authorial

ideology in a literary text (Fowler, 1986). Clauses represent events and processes of various

kinds, and transitivity aims to make clear how the action is performed, by whom and on what.

Transitivity is an essential tool in the analysis of representation. This is the reason why

ideologies can effectively and efficiently unveil using this lens.

 The following are the observed functions in the headlines of martial declaration in the

Philippines declared by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on May 23, 2017.

A. Verbal Process on headlines on Martial Law Declaration

Verbal process involved “sayer” who is the participant who utters something, verbal or

the process of saying which identifies the verb use for utterance, and verbiage referring to the

statement being uttered directly or indirectly to the listener. Target on the other hand refers to

another participant in the verbal process whom the utterance must be addressed to.

The following headlines illustrated verbal process.

Duterte declares martial law in Mindanao

Sayer Verbal Verbiage Circumstance: place

Sample 1. PhilStar

Duterte declares martial law In all Mindanao’s 27

provinces and 33

cities

Sayer Verbal Verbiage Circumstance: place

Sample 2. MindaNews

On 33 Duterte Has been About In public Since Aug.

OCCASIONS talking martial law 2016

Circumstance: Sayer Verbal Verbiage Circumstance: Circumstance:

time place time

Sample 3. Interaksyon

Duterte Declares Martial law In Mindanao

Sayer Verbal Verbiage Circumstance: place

Sample 4: Rappler
 Duterte’s Call For nationwide In the Philippines-

martial law The Atlantic

Sayer Verbal Verbiage Circumstance: place

Sample 5. theatlantic

Duterte Declares Martial law On southern

Philippine island of

Mindanao

Sayer Verbal Verbiage Circumstance: place

Sample 6. Washingtonpost

These following headlines from various sources illustrated the verbal process wherein

it emphasizes the utterance dine by the “sayer”. It is very evident that the voice portrayed in

the headlines are focusing on the utterance made by the president that he strongly imposed the

martial law in the country. The lexical item “declares” is a strong vocabulary showing power

and authority yet at the same time may provide a great threat for the security of the people.

Filipinos has very tragic history regarding martial with the late president Marcos which is why

Filipinos finds it as a threat to have an absolute power over the country since he is known or

“tagged” to be as dictator similar to the late president Marcos. Although there are no certainties

of the real motive, president Duterte asserts the declaration of the martial law only in the

Mindanao Island where Maute group has started a war. Going back to the verb phrased present

in the headlines, it shows assertion and the use of political power as the president of the country.

B. Mental Process on headlines on Martial Law Declaration

Mental processes involved cognition, affection, and perception. It focuses mainly on

verbs that are highly using people’s senses.

The samples below are showing the mental process found in the headlines about the declaration

of martial law.
 Philippines Contends Martial law In South For another year

Sensor Mental: Phenomenon Circumstance: Circumstance:

cognition place time

Sample 7. NYTimes

Philippines Martial law Threatens Escalation of abuses

Circumstance: place Sensor Mental: affection Phenomenon

Sample 8. HRW.Org

Philippines Duterte’s talk of martial law Sparks fresh Human Rights

worries

Circumstance: Sensor Circumstance: Mental: Phenomenon

place matter cognition

Sample 9. CNBC

How the violent Southern Is ignoring Martial law

Philippines

Sensor Mental: cognition Phenomenon

Sample 10. Forbes

The following headlines shows the mental process of transitivity. Transitivity

(Halliday, 1976) shows how speakers encode in language their mental picture of reality and

how they account for their experience of the world around them. In this sense, focusing on the

mental process observed in the corpora, there were numerous striking clauses showing

ideologies of different writers. Sample 6 to Sample 9 are classified as Mental process cognition

type. This means that the sensor recognizes and believe the concepts of what is on the

phenomenon. However, Sample 6,7 and 9 are using negation of positivity or even mediocrity

since verbs used were “threatens”, “contends” and “ignore”. This is an indication of negative

portrayal of the sensor or the speaker to the issue at hand. The linguistic features were highly
contextualized as negative conceptualization by using the transitive form of the verbs. Unlikely

to sample 8, the verb used was “sparks fresh” where lexical items used were much in a sense

of warm. It was portrayed creatively by using a highly sophisticated words to cover negative

connotation of the issue. By using a less intense verb in a sentence, the notion would seem to

be less negative or lighter to how it supposedly implied.

The dominant process based on the corpora is the verbal process wherein it involves

“sayer” who is the participant who utters something, verbal or the process of saying which

identifies the verb use for utterance, and verbiage referring to the statement being uttered

directly or indirectly to the listener. Having said that, most headline news was presented as

verbal entailing that the sayer referring to the president is clearly verbalizing or “declaring”

where such lexical item as a powerful showing authority. Noting as well that from Samples 1

to 6 emphasizes Duterte as the sayer. Rhea (1998) asserted that words may carry “particularly

strong connotations that carry an emotional loading beyond their literal meaning” and lexical

words are more useful in headlines than grammatical words which may cause ambiguity in

some cases since headlines have visual function (Nada, 2011). This would imply that they

recognized the authority of the president and uses the president’s image as the carrier of such

authority to put such actions towards an important political and issue. Although, this may

connote other way as well that the sayer president is provoking other people to think of a

possible threat due to past experiences about martial law in the time of President Ferdinand

Marcos. They as well always highlighted the topic about martial law to give emphasis on the

verbiage.

Headlines act as a forerunner to the news reports (Javed and Mahmood, 2011). That is,

readers tend to read the headline before they read the news article. By highlighting the sayer

verbalizing the action as its function about a very pressing political and security issue
(verbiage) may sense strongly negative rather than as a somewhat positive measure to resolve

conflicts and maintain peace and order.

On the other hand, mental process is also observed among the headlines. Mental process

in transitivity analysis, involved cognition, affection, and perception. It focuses mainly on

verbs that are highly using people’s senses. The media focused not only to the verbalization of

the president about the declaration of the martial law but as well as the mental cognition that

readership should conceived of what is happening. Sample 7 to 10 illustrated in different ways

this notion. There were negation and literary way of expressing cognition of the verbs such as

the use of lexical items “threatens”, “contends”, “is ignoring” and the highly creative verb

“sparks fresh”.

Conboy (2007), headlines serve 3 important functions which are to provide brief

summary, attract attention and provide initial indicator of the content and style of the news

valued of the newspaper and aims to present main points of the news, tells importance of the

news and catch attention (Thongkliang, 1995). By formulating a headline and telling it to the

public is a very crucial opportunity since it affects people by setting what issue is to be talked

about. Focusing in the mental functions of the headlines, the lexical terms used were very

negative and very creative to alleviate the negative implication of the news since words

“convey the imprint of society and of value judgments in particular” (Richardson, 2007).

It is very evident that writers crafted the headlines to draw attention on the act of the

president rather than the threat of national security as well as the reason why declaration has

been done. The headlines provide a very vivid description of the declaration of the martial law

but limited to include the reason why declaration was called for. It was specifically illustrated

by using the name of the president declaring the martial law and to where it was implemented

yet the reason for national security and its reason was not established which would left the

audience think that the president is primarily concerned in declaring martial law and not for
security of the people. The headlines were very much biased in the sense that all were projected

negatively despite of its great importance to Filipino people.

Conclusion

Transitive analysis is very effective in unveiling ideologies because it is a method of

analyzing the lexical items present in the text indicating the action of the subject and what is

talked about. Based from the analysis, there is very evident of negative constructs of the

headlines where people just do not mind. Headlines should be crafted without any biases so

that there is no misleading information as well as there could be a good representation of the

issue at hand. By injecting negative connotation yields to negative representation and

interpretation.

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For Online Websites References:

www.Rappler.Com
www.Forbes.com
www.Interaksyon.com
www.washingtonpost.com
www.cnbc.com
ww.cnn.philippines.com
www.hrw.org
www.nytimes.com
www.theatlantic.com
www.MindaNews.com