US president’s inauguration ceremonial as a factor in intercultural communication

Abstract

The article considers the history and development of the inauguration ceremonies of US presidents. Their role in legitimizing power and their influence on creating the image of the state is evaluated. The very specificity of the inauguration as a social phenomenon makes this ceremonial action a kind of illustration of the cultural condition, mores and tastes of society, national characteristics, becoming a symbolic characteristic of hierarchical differences. Its norms reflect not only ideology, but also the social psychology of society, without an adequate interpretation of which it is impossible to correctly understand the behavior of statesmen in specific situations related to their social status. State civil and military ceremonies, being, as a rule, striking events in the life of the state, have symbolic meaning. They establish a balance between their immediate participants and the highest environment, testify to the stability/instability within the ruling elite. Modern ceremonials of the inauguration of world presidents are politics, prestige, and the image of the government in power. On the example of the inauguration of Donald J. Trump the problem of the influence of the ceremony on the formation of the image of the United States is considered. Particular attention is paid to the image of the politician, as one of the mechanisms of cultural diplomacy. The scenario of the solemn ceremony of initiation into power (2017) is analyzed, a comparative analysis of the texts of the inaugural speeches of Obama and Trump, as program documents of the state’s domestic and foreign policy is carried out. The author concludes that the inauguration ceremony, as a form of visual communication technology, is an effective mechanism for cultural diplomacy, which, in turn, helps to develop partnerships between states and solves international problems peacefully. 1 Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor, Independent Researcher, mikepriluki@ gmail.com. ORCID: 0000-0002-2143-7020 115 US president’s inauguration ceremonial The relevance of the study lies in the fact that the norms of a state ceremonial contain not only ideology, but also the social psychology of society, without an adequate interpretation of which it is impossible to correctly understand the behavior of statesmen in specific situations related to their official status. Each state ceremonial is a program of the current government. Therefore, no matter how sacred the traditions of the initiation ceremony, founded in the United States at the end of the 18th century, were kept in the United States, the newly elected president came with his action plan, which pursued very specific goals and tasks caused by internal and external political situations. It would be reckless to follow the traditions of state ceremonial culture to the detriment of the authority of the government and the development of the state.