The Language of War: A Corpus-Based Study of Agenda-Setting, Framing, and Ideology in the Iran–US–Israel Conflict

Abstract

This study investigates the linguistic representation of Iran, Israel, and the United States through a corpus-based analysis of political speeches, military statements, and news articles. A 100,000-token corpus was compiled from official sources, including speeches by heads of state and armed forces, as well as major news outlets. Using corpus linguistic techniques such as frequency analysis, keyword analysis, collocation, and concordance, this study examines how each actor, Iran, Israel, and the United States, is framed in terms of legitimacy, threat, and security discourse. Findings reveal systematic ideological patterns: Iran is predominantly represented as a threatening and destabilizing actor, Israel as a defensive and legitimized actor, and the United States as a powerful global leader and strategic actor. These results highlight the role of language in constructing political realities and shaping public perception, demonstrating the utility of corpus-based approaches in critical discourse analysis of international conflicts.