Society is generally inclined to promote values that they consider noble, in some cases people actually upholding these respective ideas without having a complex understanding of them. Presidential elections have always been subjective and this influenced candidates to come up with intriguing ways to shape public opinion. It is almost as if the world has reached a point where political candidates know more about the masses than vice-versa. Donald Trump's atypical political campaign has been a particularly interesting one, especially due to the fact that he seems to maintain an attitude influencing numerous voters to support him. In a time when people seem more enthusiastic about electing the "one of us" type of politicians as a consequence of their ability to see the bigger picture regarding everyday problems, Donald Trump emerges as one of the American Presidential candidates most likely to succeed. This is probable to come as a surprise to many, as he is among the people one would consider least probable to express interest in the well-being of the masses. Democrats in particular are bewildered as they observe people supporting him in large numbers in spite of the fact that he seems to have extremist principles concerning certain controversial concepts.

It is likely that Donald Trump's success is the result of an opportunist taking advantage of the circumstances of the contemporary U.S. One could go as far as to say that people like him on account of him admitting that he sees the same general problems with the world as they do. The simple fact that he came forward and referred to all of these issues publicly made it possible for him to experience rapid progress. When considering George Lakoff's thory of frames, it would seem that Trump took on a frame that was already built. This respective frame was not necessarily made for a particular individual, as it was actually designed to fit anyone having the resources to exploit it. Trump's financial condition enabled him to make use of political channels with the purpose to attract the masses.

Donald Trump's general attitude is based on the idea of him having a common background as the masses. This background doesn't necessarily involve having had the same upbringing as other people, as it actually refers to him having been raised in a society promoting principles brought forward by the founding fathers. Ideas like freedom and justice are exploited in Trump's rallies and this seems to influence people to support him even more. The frame that Trump took on is also one resulting from people no longer trusting conventional Presidential administrations. Consequent to years of seeing the U.S. having more and more problems, a large part of the American public resorted to choosing the atypical political candidate in hope that this way they'll have more chances to see change happen. His radical attitudes are to some a wake-up call and a way for them to take matters into their own hands. It is probable that people feel they will have more authority over their lives if Trump becomes President of the United States.

This phenomenon is worth watching closely as a result of today's political environment being very different from how it was in the past. Especially in the U.S. people were accustomed to seeing two political candidates, one from the Republican Party and one from the Democratic Party, fighting for the position of the country's President without going through too much efforts and without performing actions that were out of the ordinary. In the present election process one can observe political candidates that are nonconformist both as a consequence of their persona and because of the way they conduct their campaigns. Donald Trump is no exception from the rule and despite the fact that some of his actions are peculiar he seems to get a lot of attention both locally and internationally.

Question 2.

Donald Trump's determination is enough for some people to accept him as the perfect candidate for Presidency. By expressing daring opinions he manages to make voters feel that he is not afraid to speak his mind -- a quality that has come to be rare in the contemporary society. These respective bold moves are enough for some to appreciate him -- people basically believe that their country's problems are owed to

The masses are easily influenced when it comes to being provided with the idea of bad and the idea of good. Trump's statement that John McCain cannot possibly be considered a war hero due to him being captured actually made a lot of people believe that true heroes are the type of people who defeat the enemy rather than the ones who are defeated.
In a way it would be safe to say that Trump's attitude is similar to the Strict Father Model that Lakoff presents in "The Brain's Role in Family Values." The family (i.e. the United States) needs an authoritarian figure in order to make sure its rights are respected. "Mapped onto politics, the strict father model explains why conservatism is concerned with authority, with obedience, with discipline, and with punishment." (Lakoff, 78) Surely, some of Trump's attitudes might seem harsh to some people, but this does not mean that they are really wrong. This is the mindset that's probable to be present in people's thinking when they see Trump performing actions that were against every value they believed in just a decade ago. This is a time for extreme measures, taking into account the country's critical status in the present. Individuals like Donald Trump might not be the perfect leaders in general, but they seem to be when considering the contemporary political environment in the U.S. The fact that he appears to be the no-nonsense type of individual influences the masses to believe that he might be the only candidate actually capable of making reform happen. In contrast to other candidates, he seems to be the type of individual who is willing to take things further. With numerous people across the U.S. thinking that their country is in a desperate condition, some believe that the only solution would be for them to perform an extraordinary feat.

Although Donald Trump is an unusual Presidential candidate, Lakoff seems to completely ignore the group of people that might actually be interested in voting for such a person. He instead chooses to consider that most of his voters are individuals who are indirectly forced to choose him because he is one of their only hopes to improve their lives and the American society as a whole. The reality is that many republicans are likely to agree to Trump's type of thinking because it brings something new to the party. In a way it makes it seem that it is no longer interested only in the well-being of the wealthy, as it also addresses the needs of the masses and aims to take the U.S. back to a state it attained several decades before.

Trump is obviously a showman and he takes advantage of this quality to the fullest by being unhesitant about confronting his adversaries directly. He adopts a similar attitude toward a series of other critics and seems to get recognition from the public as a result of this.

Question 3.

The current Presidential elections in the U.S. are very controversial for a series of reasons. The public sees an elderly individual who appeals to the younger public, a wealthy businessman who suddenly started to express interest into the masses, and a woman who was actually married to a former President. These are just some of the candidates and the fact that they are the ones who seems to receive the most support from the masses says something about U.S. culture in the present. People obviously feel the need to see change happen and they are willing to do everything in their power to make this possible.

I chose to address Donald Trump through employing a set of ideas characteristic to Lakoff due to the fact that the cognitive linguist normally uses logic in order to explain people's behavior. It would be difficult to say whether or not elections are actually subjective. To a certain degree people are influenced by the environments they are living in. Even with this, they are also likely to develop new ideas and to see things that previously seemed uninteresting as being especially attractive. These individuals are the product of society as much as being the product of their own thinking. When considering such circumstances, voting for Donald Trump might actually seem like the only viable option for some individuals. Seeing that they were accustomed to voting promising individuals and saw little to no benefits as a consequence, they came to believe that voting for a more extreme candidate might be the answer to their country's questions.

Works cited:

Lakoff, G. "The Political Mind." "

Lakoff, G. "Why Trump?." Retrieved April 19, 2016, from https://georgelakoff.com/2016/03/02/why-trump/