Linguistic Analysis of Facebook Comments on the Coronavirus Containment Measures in France and Slovenia

Abstract

This article analyses how Slovenian and French Facebook users reacted to the containment measures that were put into place during the COVID-19 pandemic. The two main objectives of this analysis are to identify the linguistic structures used by the Facebook users to respond to the COVID-19 measures, and to compare how these reactions evolved between the first and second lockdowns on a linguistic level. The theoretical framework covers computer-mediated communication, discourse analysis, opinion mining, and the linguistic characteristics of French and Slovenian. The analysis revealed that Facebook users in both countries generally reacted negatively to the lockdown measures. The use of paralinguistic signs (emoticons, GIFs) increased during the second lockdown. Syntactically, declarative sentences were the most commonly used type of sentence in both linguistic groups. Slovenian users, however, mainly expressed support and neutrality through complex sentences, while French users did so primarily through simple sentences. For comments of disagreement, the pattern was reversed. The pragmatic analysis showed that, early in the pandemic, most commentators welcomed strict measures, but this became rarer and the comments more critical by the second lockdown. Neutral comments shifted from seeking additional information to expressing doubt and demanding greater transparency. The biggest differences appeared in comments of disagreement: French criticism shifted to sarcasm and mockery, while in Slovenia they escalated into direct threats and violent insults. This master’s thesis enhances the understanding of the dynamics of online interactions during a crisis and highlights significant cultural differences and similarities in how the French and Slovenian populations reacted to the lockdown measures on social media.