Derogatory Nominations in the Impolite Digital Discourse of Brazil and the Czech Republic

Abstract

Derogatory nominations as a discursive strategy are a linguistic phenomenon present in various cultures and political contexts. The use of pejorative terms to disqualify public figures, parties, and social groups plays a central role in identity construction and the polarization of public discourse. As in Brazil, the Czech Republic also has a rich tradition of derogatory names that arise in political and media contexts. Therefore, this study aims to demonstrate the use of these names in Brazilian Portuguese and Czech, highlighting their linguistic constructions and discursive effects in impolite contexts. The analysis is based on the Modular Approach to Discourse Analysis (Roulet; Filliettaz; Grobet, 2001), Culpeper’s theory of impoliteness (1996; 2005; 2010; 2011), and the perspective of the reconfiguration of sociocultural identity (Pasek, 2022). The research found that, in both Brazil and the Czech Republic, derogatory nominations are strategically used to disqualify political opponents and reinforce collective identities. Furthermore, it was observed that although linguistic strategies vary between the two cultural contexts in terms of construction and reference, both share the function of polarizing public discourse and consolidating ideological borders, contributing to social exclusion while also enabling processes of self-censorship and identity reconfiguration. These results suggest that the phenomenon is a relevant indicator of sociopolitical and cultural transformations in the digital age.