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La personnalisation des témoins lors de procès: rhétorique et ventriloquie lors des questions introductives

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Résumé

Lors d’un procès, les questions introductives en début d’interrogatoire peuvent aider non seulement à mettre le témoin à l’aise, mais également à le personnaliser, c’est-à-dire de le présenter sous un jour particulier, ce qui peut jouer sur sa crédibilité et l’empathie du décideur à son endroit. Cet article vise à mettre en évidence les mécanismes discursifs sous-jacents à ce processus et à illustrer empiriquement comment les réponses aux questions introductives y participent. À l’aide de l’approche ventriloque de la communication, un extrait du témoignage (les questions et réponses introductives) d’un ex-maire de la ville de Montréal à la Commission Charbonneau est analysé en profondeur. L’analyse que nous proposons contribue à mieux comprendre ce qui se joue lors d’un témoignage, celui-ci devenant, selon notre perspective, ce lieu constamment disloqué dans lequel plusieurs figures (e.g., des faits, des qualités, des principes, des valeurs et des personnes absentes) se mettent à littéralement faire des choses et dire des choses afin qu’un témoin gagne ou perde la faveur du décideur.

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Notes

  1. L’enregistrement vidéo du témoignage de Gérald Tremblay peut être visionné à l’adresse suivante: https://www.ceic.gouv.qc.ca/audiences/enregistrement-video.html?no_cache=1&tx_cspqaudiences_pi1[uid]=547&cHash=45914629db0f30c2371ca896f097affa.

  2. On notera ici que même si l’approche ventriloque de la communication mobilise certaines avancées cruciales de l’analyse de conversation [21], elle s’en éloigne lorsqu’il s’agit de ne retenir que les figures qui font l’objet d’une orientation explicite de la part des interlocuteurs. Ainsi, un analyste de conversation pourrait nous reprocher de surinterpréter cette marque de docilité dans la mesure où elle ne fait pas l’objet d’un quelconque commentaire de la part des interlocuteurs par la suite. En lien avec une position assez répondue en sémiotique, nous pensons cependant que cette stricture de l’analyse conversationnelle ne rend pas justice à tout ce qui se passe dans une interaction. Autrement dit, même si la docilité du témoin n’est jamais commentée par la Commissaire France Charbonneau ou la procureure en chef de la Commission Charbonneau, Me Sonia LeBel, nous pensons qu’elle peut être identifiée, non seulement dans ce passage, mais également dans d’autres que nous relèverons plus loin dans notre analyse.

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  1. Département de communication, Université de Montréal, Pavillon Marie-Victorin, FAS, succ. Centre-ville, Case postale 6128, Montréal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada

    Vincent Denault & François Cooren

  2. Centre d’études en sciences de la communication non verbale, Montréal, QC, Canada

    Vincent Denault

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Denault, V., Cooren, F. La personnalisation des témoins lors de procès: rhétorique et ventriloquie lors des questions introductives. Int J Semiot Law 30, 321–349 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-016-9496-3

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