An Analysis of Donald Trump’s 2018 United Nations Speech Using Van Dijk’s Socio-Cognitive Model

Abstract

This study presents a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) of U.S. President Donald Trump’s address to the United Nations General Assembly using Teun A. Van Dijk’s Socio-Cognitive Model. The analysis explores how the text intricately links language, cognition, and society to shape the audience's mental models and advance a nationalist political worldview. Textually and cognitively, the research evaluates how the discourse utilizes ideological polarization through specific rhetorical strategies, including positive self-presentation of the "in-group" (the United States and its current administration) and negative other-presentation of the "out-group" (globalist ideologies, rival states like Iran and Venezuela, and international organizations). By examining linguistic features such as strategic pronoun usage ("we/our" vs. "they/them"), threat framing, and the simplification of complex global issues, the study demonstrates how the speech creates an "Us vs. Them" dichotomy. Sociophysically and institutionally, the analysis unpacks how delivering this anti-globalist, sovereignty-centered message within the United Nations environment serves to challenge international cooperation and signal a profound shift in American foreign policy. Ultimately, the study illustrates how the speech reproduces a nationalist ideology that establishes national sovereignty as morally superior to global governance, framing the nation-state as the ultimate unit of authority and protection.