A Critical Discourse Analysis of Charlie Chaplin’s Final Speech in the Great Dictator

Political and ideological discourses can sometimes be challenged through different channels, not just in legislative chambers or on battlefields, but also within the realm of popular culture. The final speech of Charles Chaplin in The Great Dictator (1940) can be considered a revolutionary moment in political rhetoric and cinema. It serves as a powerful humanist plea that presents a direct, out-of-character monologue delivered during the rise of fascism beyond its satirical context. This paper provides a critical discourse analysis of the speech, using Norman Fairclough's three-dimensional framework as the primary method, supplemented by the theories of Mikhail Bakhtin and Michel Foucault. It tries to analyse the speech's linguistic structure (Text), its function as a communicative event (Discursive Practice), and how it functions as a form of social action (Sociocultural Practice). The study claims that the speech shows a powerful critique with a humanist voice that steadily challenges the dominant fascist ideology by reversing its messages, redefining the ideas of power, humanity, and progress. The analysis shows how Chaplin tries to discursively shift the source of power from authoritarian leaders to the people through his linguistic choices, genre subversion, and use of his global persona, making the speech a vital piece of political and cinematic history.