Political communication

The first years of independence are uniquely significant for the politi cal evolution of any nation. They set the frame of reference in which the course of public life develops. Ensuing years usually bring great changes, yet the impact lingers on. It is in the early years that heroic figures form national traditions by historic acts of successful affirmation of the col lective self. Their words and deeds provide an interpretative gloss on constitutional charters and international agreements. The norms of the time are subsequently available for capture by all who would initiate movements for the regeneration of belief, faith, and loyalty.

Our interest in this book is in the interplay between India and the United States. We are in search of a means of making accessible to con cerned citizens of both countries an understanding of their likenesses and differences. The study of political rhetoric provides a suitable beginning for reciprocal insight and understanding as the authors have discovered in their own experience. The language of politics is part of the exposure of all who follow public affairs. We have sought to present the public utterances of the top figures of India and the United States at the same. cross-section in time, and to do so in an analytic framework designed to bring out the points at which they diverge or converge in relation to one another.