Language, Power, and Solidarity in Public Service in Purwakarta District

Abstract

This article discusses the analysis of the use of language in public services, which plays a very important role, not only as a means of conveying information, but also as a medium for forming power relations and solidarity between officers and the public. This research aims to examine the representation of power and solidarity in public service speech. The research uses a descriptive qualitative approach with discourse analysis and pragmatics methods. Research data is in the form of oral and written speech used by public service officials in interacting with the public, which is collected through observation, recording and documentation techniques. Data analysis focused on lexical choices, forms of speech acts, politeness strategies, and the use of greetings in service contexts. The research results show that power relations are reflected through the dominance of directive speech, the use of formal language, and instructional sentence structures. Meanwhile, solidarity is realised through the use of more communicative language, personal greetings, and positive politeness strategies that emphasise empathy and social closeness. This research confirms that the balance between power and solidarity in public service speech contributes to communication effectiveness and service quality.