Intenzifikacija/mitigacija – diskurzivne strategije u funkciji legitimizacije rimske osvajačke politike u djelu Historia Romana V. Paterkula
Intensification/Mitigation – Discursive Strategies in the Function ff Legitimizing Roman Imperial Policy in Velleius Paterculus’ Historia Romana

Summary/Abstract: Discursive strategies of intensification and mitigation were introduced by the linguist Ruth Wodak within the framework of the discourse-historical approach. These strategies often appear alongside other discursive strategies, amplifying or softening their effects. The subject of this research is the analysis of their application in Velleius Paterculus’ Roman History. In his effort to legitimize the expansion and domination of the Roman people, the author spontaneously employs these two strategies, thereby—perhaps unconsciously—pointing to the social function of language, that is, to discourse as a form of social practice, as well as to the interconnectedness of discourse, ideology, power, and domination, which will be the focus of this paper. The subjugation of rebellious peoples and the securing of Roman borders is justified by the necessity of preserving traditional Roman values. Discipline, piety, and justice are presented as principles that brought Rome prestige and power. Roman rulers and generals are depicted as guardians of these values, as well as of Roman power and stability. Consequently, all of their actions are justified as being in pursuit of a higher goal. The author’s discourse reflects strong ideological polarizations, in which everything Roman is dominant and superior, while everything foreign is portrayed as vulgar, barbaric, threatening, and unacceptable. Intensification nearly always accompanies the glorification of the Roman and the devaluation of the foreign, while mitigation appears in the downplaying of Roman defeats and misdeeds, or when acknowledging the superiority and virtues of others. To this end, the author often resorts to topoi, collective agency, panegyrics, historical analogies (including numerical comparisons), ideological arguments, and more. Accordingly, this article also addresses the role of the historian in shaping the narrative of Roman imperial policy and the effects of these discursive strategies on the reader’s perception of Roman imperial policy.

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