This thesis explores how the discourse around immigration in Russia is shaped by the government, and by society segmented in actors disapproving or favorable of immigration. From the selected...Show moreThis thesis explores how the discourse around immigration in Russia is shaped by the government, and by society segmented in actors disapproving or favorable of immigration. From the selected primary sources, four main themes of discussion and four subsequent main techniques of persuasion used in argumentation around the themes are identified and scrutinized through critical discourse analysis. The main themes are economy, security, lifestyle and demography; the main techniques are play on emotion, anecdotal approach, comparison and statistical manipulation. The main findings of this paper constitute the following. The government pursues a dual policy to maximize the number of its adherents, and in its rhetoric most noticeably uses comparison for the purpose of justifying its policies. Anti-immigrant groups exploit all techniques extensively and mostly build their numerous arguments around economic, security and lifestyle concerns. Immigrant advocacy groups refrain from thorough discussion of security issues, present a limited amount of economic arguments, and focus instead on lifestyle and demography. They use all techniques as well but mainly play on emotion and narrate individual stories, displaying the immigrants’ perspective and encouraging leniency.Show less
