“Kǝtät Awaj”s of Emperor Mǝnilǝk and Ḫailä Sǝlasse to counter the Italian Aggressions: A Comparative Text Analysis

Abstract

The main objective of this article is to analyse the differences between the texts of “Kǝtät Awaj”s of Emperor Mǝnilǝk and Emperor Ḫailä Sǝlasse to counter the Italian aggressions and the reasons behind their differences. The text versions used for the analysis were taken from the chronicles of Emperor Mǝnilǝk and Ḫailä Sǝlasse by Gäbrä Sǝlasse and Gäbrä Wälǝd respectively. Two parallel text analysis approaches, rhetorical criticism and content analysis, were employed. Accordingly, differences are observed between the two texts in terms of size, the historical setting in which they were written, way of addressing the peoples, techniques of selecting persuasive matters, declaring methods of providing food supplies, firearms, and ammunitions, confidences or wording tones of the emperors, identifications of a place of mobilizations and stating techniques of marches to the war fronts. The basic reasons behind these differences lie in the nature of the state apparatus and the level of centralization versus decentralisation of the government's political power.