A Critical Discourse Analysis of Metaphors in the Eulogisation of Raila Amollo Odinga: Constructing a Political Saint in the Kenyan Imagination

Abstract

This study conducts a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) of the metaphors used to eulogise Raila Amollo Odinga, a central figure in Kenya's opposition politics. Moving beyond the analysis of his own political rhetoric, this paper examines the posthumous discourse that constructed his legacy. Drawing on Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT) to systematically identify and categorise the dominant metaphorical expressions in eulogies, media reports, and public tributes, the study employs Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as an interpretive lens to unpack the ideological functions, power relations, and socio-political implications embedded within these metaphors. Data for this study were collected across three key phases of the mourning period: immediately after death, during public viewing and during the state funeral and burial ceremony. CMT was used to identify metaphors from official eulogies, media coverage, commentaries and analysis on television and Kenyan Newspapers, radio stations and social media memorial messages, while CDA was used to interpret their ideological and socio-political implications. The findings demonstrate that metaphors such as "Baba," "Lion," "Mighty Tree," and "Guiding Light"actively sanctify Odinga, transforming a contentious political leader into a transcendent symbol of democracy, struggle, and national identity. This process draws heavily on Kenyan political history and local cultural archetypes to legitimise his legacy, sustain his political movement, and influence the nation's socio-political trajectory. The study concludes that eulogistic metaphors are potent instruments for shaping collective memory and perpetuating political ideologies beyond an individual's lifetime, and that the integration of CMT's descriptive rigour with CDA's critical interpretive framework offers a robust analytical model for understanding how posthumous political discourse operates. This study, therefore, makes a contribution towards posthumous political discourse analysis.