Discourse Analysis

COURSE (Golf Course, English Course)DISCOURSECOURSE DESIGN (Planning a Course)

What is discourse ?

discourse (kb)=. pidato atau tulisan, percakapan, ceramah.

scientific discourse = wacana ilmiah.

discourse (kki). bercakap-cakap. to d. on bercakap-cakap mengenai.

Definitions of Discourse (1)Long and serious speech (Oxford LP Dictionary)

A particular unit of language (above the sentence), or discourse in structure;

A particular focus on language use, discourse as function.

Discourse is:

language above the sentence or above the clause

a continuous stretch of spoken language larger than a sentence, often constituting a coherent unit

a stretch of language perceived to be meaningful unified, and purposive; language in use

(viewed) as social practice determined by social structuresDefinitions of Discourse (2)

Definition of Discourse (3)Discourse written and spoken DiscourseSpeaker/ writerHearer/ readerContext

Definitions of discourse (4)

A set of terms, metaphors, allusions, ways of talking, references and so on, which constitute an object

A to-and-fro of exchanges in talk (or text) that performs social actions

Structural and functional definitions of discourseStructural or textual definition of discourse:Discourse is a particular unit of language (above the sentence).

Functional definition of discourse: Discourse is a particular focus of language use.

Discourse as structure ?

Problem:

you can have a unit which looks like a sentence But doesnt mean anything

e.g. Colourless green ideas sleep furiously

Discourse as structure ?

but on the other hand the units in which people speak do not always look like sentences.

e.g. You can run a hou- whatcha- now whatcha you can run a house-you can run a house a- and do the job, which is important, y cant y- a man cant do it himself, and a woman cant do it himself w- if y want it to be successful. In most cases.

Discourse as structure ?

How do you analyse something which is not a sentence?

Discourse as structure ?

How do you analyse a sentence?

Discourse as structure ?

How do you analyse something which is not a sentence?

Discourse as a System of functions ?e.g. whats the time?Phatic function (opens a contact)Emotive function (conveys the need of the speaker)Conative function (asks something of the addressee)Referential function (makes reference to the world outside the language)PROBLEM:Discourse analysis may turn into a more general and broader analysis of language functions.

Objects of discourseDiscourse refers to any utterance which is meaningful.

These texts can be:- written texts- oral texts (speech/talk)- mixed written/oral texts (e.g. Internet chat)

Discourse does not depend on the size of a text (P and Ladies can both be analysed as discourse)

The scope of discourse analysis

Discourse analysis is not a discipline which exists on its own. It is influenced by other disciplines and influences them as well. It is a two-way process

For this reason discourse analysis examines spoken and written texts from all sorts of different areas (medical, legal, advertising) and from all sorts of perspectives (race, gender, power)

Discourse analysis has a number of practical applications - for example in analysing communication problems in medicine, psychotherapy, education, in analysing written style etc.

Influences on discourse analysissociolinguisticsDiscourse Analysispsycholinguisticscomputational linguisticspragmaticsother non-linguistic disciplinesother linguistic disciplines

Approaches to DiscourseDeborah Schiffrin Approaches to Discourse (1994) singles out 6 major approaches to discourse:

the speech act approach;interactional sociolinguistics;the ethnography of communication;pragmatic approach;conversation analysis;variationist approach.

Approaches to Discourse (1) The Speech Act ApproachFounders of the speech act theory: John Austin & JohnSearle.There are different types of speech acts: e.g. speak louder (directive)Oxford Street is a shoppers paradise (assertive)

Although speech act theory was not first developed as a means of analyzing discourse, particular issues in speech act theory (indirect speech acts, multiple functions of utterances) led to discourse analysis

Approaches to Discourse (2) Interactional sociolinguisticsRepresents the combination of three disciplines: anthropology, sociology, and linguistics.

Focuses on how people from different cultures may share grammatical knowledge of a language but contextualize what is said differently to produce different messages. e.g. yeah, bring them down here. Ill flog them for you (Australian English)

Approaches to Discourse (3) The ethnography of communication The way we communicate depends a lot on the culture we come from. Some stereotypes:Finnish people: the hardest nation for communication, quiet and serious?Turkish people: very talkative and friendly? Ethnography investigates speaker culture

Approaches to Discourse (4) PragmaticsH. P. Grice: the cooperative principle and conversational maxims.People interact by using minimal assumptions about one another.

Approaches to Discourse (5) Conversation analysis

e.g. A: This is Mr. Smith may I help youB: I cant hear youA: This is Mr. SmithB: Smith.

Conversational analysis is particularly interested in the sequencing of utterances, i.e. not in what people say but in how they say it

The Rules of Language

All of us who have learned a second language or studied our own language are aware that language has rules.

What are some of these rules?

The Rules of Language Phonological rules how we put sounds together to make words

(1a) cat + s(1b) dog +z

Syntactic rules how we put words together to make sentences

(2a) The big dog quickly ate my breakfast(2b) *The dog big ate quickly my breakfast

Have a good week end (Heve gud wigen)

ANJING, MAKAN AYAM MATIANJING MAKAN AYAM ,MATIANJING MAKAN, AYAM MATIANJING MAKAN AYAM MATI?

Seminggu yang lalu, oleh mereka, mahasiswa baru itu belum dikenal.Seminggu yang lalu, mahasiswa baru itu oleh mereka belum dikenal.Seminggu yang lalu, belum dikenal oleh mereka mahasiswa baru itu.Mahasiswa baru itu, seminggu yang lalu belum dikenal oleh mereka.Mahasiswa baru itu, seminggu yang lalu oleh mereka belum dikenal.

The Rules of Conversation We also have rules for putting sentences together to make larger units of discourse (written or spoken)

Discourse means any spoken or written language that has been produced in order to communicate.

Our primary concern is with spoken language more specifically with conversation.

The Rules of Conversation

In any language, there are rules for conversation:

how to interrupt a speaker,how to know when a speakers turn is over, how to change a topic, what topic is appropriate, etc.

Discourse Markers Speakers give us clues about:when they are finished speaking, when they are going to change a topic, when they expect us to speak or not to speak.

These clues are known as discourse markers.

There are certain kinds of discourse markers, called logical connectors, that gives us information about how one part of spoken discourse relates to the next.

Discourse Markers

It is important to know that all languages have :conversational rules and discourse markers.

Conversational rules and discourse markers are different for different languages.

Knowing a language also means knowing the system of conversational rules and discourse markers.

Rules of Talk Talk is structured and is based upon principles which govern who may talk and for how long

Principles of conversation are culturally specific

Rules of Talk Rules of talk determine:

Who talks and when they talk (turn taking)

Who sets the topic of the talk

Who may change the topic and when it may be changed

What kind of language is used in the talk (formal, informal, polite)

The Situational Context of Talk Another factor that will affect the rules of talk is the situation itself. That is, the purpose of talk.

If you are seeking refugee status, there are probably procedures in place that will dictate things such as the topic, who speaks when, who asks and answers questions, what kinds of questions may be asked, etc.

The Situational Context of Talk

Talk in the context of seeking medical or legal services visiting a doctor or a lawyer, will determine different rules of setting the topic, who speaks when, etc.

It is very important to be aware of the social and situational contexts of an interview and how they will affect the rules of talk.

More About the Rules of Talk:The Topic As we know, the topic of your talk is set by the context of the talk: interview seeking status, services, etc.

During the interview, the topic may change. Whether or not your client may initiate a change in topic depends upon the context of the talk and the nature of the social relationship between your client and the person to whom he or she is talking.

More About the Rules of Talk:The Topic If the person is an official of some organization, such as the UNHCR, that person will have a higher social status, in the context of the interview, according to the rules of talk.

Therefore, that person, and not your client, will be the one to set and change the topic. That person may give your client the opportunity to change the topic, but your client should probably ask first.

Breaking these rules can have different outcomes: they may negatively affect the results of the interview or they may not.

More About the Rules of Talk:Turn Taking The social and situational context of the interview will also determine who speaks first, how long they may speak, and whether or not they have the right to interrupt a speaker.

Generally, a person of higher social status will speak first, for as long as they need, and should not be interrupted.

One thing that you should know as an interpreter is how to recognize discourse markers that indicate when a speaker is finished with his or her turn.

More About the Rules of Talk:Turn Taking A speaker may signal the end of a turn by asking one person to respond, either by asking a question, making a request ,or issuing an invitation.

Or, a speaker may stop talking and leave a period of silence. This is culturally specific.

If the speaker is a native-speaker of English, then any period of silence may be interpreted as giving up a speaking turn.

More About the Rules of Talk:Backchannel Cues When one person is speaking to another, the listener has to let the speaker know that they are listening and want the speaker to continue.

This is done differently in different languages, but most languages use some kind of speech device to signal the speaker to continue. These devices are know as backchannel cues.

More About the Rules of Talk:Backchannel CuesIn English, the listener often says uh hu, ya, right, sure or simple nods the head once in a while.

If you dont believe these are necessary for conversation in English, try an experiment.

Next time you are speaking to a native speaker of English, dont do anything when its their turn to talk and see what happens.

Understanding Talk:Recognizing Discourse Markers As an interpreter, it is important to be able to recognize when the speaker is changing topics, making an important point, and linking one idea to another in some logical way.

Some English discourse markers used to indicate a change in topic are: the repetition of a main theme; using words such as OK, alright, now, moving along.

Understanding Talk:Recognizing Discourse Markers Words that signal the logical relationship between one statement and another are called conjunctions. We may want to think of them as logical connectors.

I could give you a visa (but, though, however) it will be for just one month

You would need to get the proper forms (then, after that, next) youll have to bring them back to this office

Knowing what all of these are helps you to more quickly understand a speakers meaning.

Summary of approaches to discourse

Approaches to Studying DiscourseFocus of ResearchResearch QuestionStructuralCASequences of talkWhy say that at that moment?VariationistStructural categories within textsWhy that form?FunctionalSpeech ActsCommunicative actsHow to do things with words?Ethnography of CommunicationCommunication as cultural behaviourHow does discourse reflect culture?Interactional SociolinguisticsSocial and linguistic meanings created during communicationWhat are they doing?PragmaticsMeaning in interactionWhat does the speaker mean?

From The Sun online 21 June 2006

ENGLANDS next clash will be against a nation of GUINEA PIG eaters.We avoided a showdown with old enemy Germany for now and will play Ecuador on Sunday.

Heres your Sun guide to the South American teams dangermen plus a few facts about the country where their national dish is a roasted pet.It would be easy to underestimate them. But Ecuador beat mighty Brazil and Argentina in the South American qualifying rounds.

[continues]

ENGLANDS next clash will be against a nation of GUINEA PIG eaters.We avoided a showdown with old enemy Germany for now and will play Ecuador on Sunday.

Heres your Sun guide to the South American teams dangermen plus a few facts about the country where their national dish is a roasted pet.

The whole nation?Nothing else?Why old enemy?Facts?Whose pet?

Ecuadors capital Quito is 9,300ft above sea level, giving their footballers a home advantage when they play in the thin air.They were a Spanish colony until they seized their independence in 1822. Out of a population of 14 million, 3,000 Ecuador fans are in Germany. Football is the No1 sport but they also love basketball and bullfights.The main exports are coffee and bananas.The language is Spanish. But lets hope their fans get no chance to shout Ol against England in Stuttgart on Sunday.Other facts not chosen?Inevitable Spanish-speaker behaviour?Whos us?

The Times online 22 June 2006

PRESIDENT BUSH sought to repair his tattered reputation in Europe yesterday, talking of his deep desire to close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp and conceding that his response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks had not been understood by much of the continent.Assumes it is tatteredCompare expressing his deep desireAssumes (someone) has made an accusation

DAY 2

Learning to use the analysis of language to solve real-life problems at work, at school and at home.

Theory and Practical Application

DiscourseDiscourse is: language above the sentence level or above the clause.Stubbs 1998The study of discourse is the study of any aspect of language use. Fasold 1990The analysis of discourse is the analysis of language in useit cannot be restricted to the description of linguistic forms independent of the purposes or functions that they serve in human affairs. Brown and Yule 1983

DiscourseDiscourse is for me more than just language in use: It is language use, whether speech or writing, seen as a type of social practice. Fairclough 1992Discourse constitutes the socialDiscourse is shaped by relations of power, and invested with ideologies. Fairclough 1992

Discourse (non-count) vs. DiscoursesSaying, Doing, Thinking, Behaving, Believing, Valuing, Interacting combinations that show who we are (Gee) The Discourse of medicineThe Discourse of romance

Discourse isHow language reflects realityHow language creates realityHow language shapes our identities and interactionsHow language is used as to tool to control people

What is the meaning of this sentence?

Yes, I am happy.

Meaning depends onHowWhereWhenTo whomWhy

Pragmatics

How we do things with words

The study of meaning in different contexts of use

How language is used to do things in real world situations

Discourse AnalysisMediatedDiscourseAnalysis

The Ethnography of CommunicationCommunication as a matter of cultural competence

Focus on things like setting, participants, mood, and other kinds of behavioral rules

What are some of the rules for complaining to your superior?

Genre Analysis

Communication as using the generic conventions of a discourse community

Focus on the structure of the interaction

Pragmatics

Communication as doing things with words

Sentence meaning vs. speaker meaning

Politeness Theory

Communication as a way of encoding social relationships

Focus on Face threatening acts and Face saving strategies

Conversation Analysis

Communication as joint activity

Attention to the sequential organization of talk, turn-taking and topic management

Interactional Sociolinguistics

Communication as a way of signaling social activities and social identities

Attention to strategies speakers use to signal activity and identity

Critical Discourse AnalysisCommunication as a way of exercising and resisting powerFocus on existing power relations and how they are reinforcedExamines underlying assumptions Asks, who really won?

Multimodal Discourse AnalysisCommunication as a matter of combining multiple modesFocus not just on words but on gestures, facial expressions, posture, proxemics, gaze, object handling, spatial layout, time and timing

Mediated Discourse AnalysisCommunication as a tool for taking actionFocus on actions and the cultural tools that make them possible

ConclusionCommunication is not just a matter of wordsCommunication is a matter of actionCommunication is a matter of relationships and powerCommunication creates and re-creates our social worlds

DAY 3

From The Sun online 21 June 2006

The Times online 22 June 2006

Discourse analysis: Teun Van DijkDiscourse analytical approaches systematically describe the various structures and strategies of text or talk, and relate these to the social, cultural or political context.

For instance, they may focus on overall topics, or more local meanings (such as coherence and implications) in a semantic analysis. But also the syntactic form of sentences, or the overall organisation of a news report may be examined in detail.

The same is true for variations of style, rhetorical devices such as metaphors or euphemisms, speech acts such as promises and threats, and in spoken discourse also the many forms of interaction.

Teun Van Dijk, (2000)New(s) Racism: A Discourse Analytical Approach in S.Cottle(ed) Ethnic Minorities and the Media: Changing Cultural Boundaries. Open University Press.

Discourse analysis: Teun Van DijkTopicsQuotesArgumentationLocal meanings (ie. code words) and meanings of sentencesImplicit Meanings

Example: The West Indian woman claimed that they were being discriminated against.Presupposition:Example:If the ordinary British taste for decency and tolerance is to come through, it will need positive and unmistakableaction.(Telegraph, editorial 13. August.)

Discourse analysis: Teun Van DijkSyntactic styleExample: On Saturday, police were petrol-bombed, shops looted and cars burned after the shooting of a West Indian woman.(Times, 30 September)

Rhetoric: alliteration, rhyme, parallelism

Example: (Handsworth) FACE TO FACE WITH THE FEAR AND FURY OF LOZELLS ROAD. (Mail, 11 September)

Discourse analysis: Teun Van DijkRhetoric: alliteration, rhyme, parallelism

Example:(Tottenham) BOMBS, BULLETS, BLOOD IN BARRICADED BRITAIN (Mail, 27 December)

Example:The widow of Keith Blakelock, the brave bobbybutchered by black rioters, said last night that she pitied the killers. (Sun, 8 October)Example:(Handsworth) It was in essence, not a race riot It was not a spontaneous eruption of human misery It was not caused by unemployment, or poverty. (Telegraph 13 September, editorial)

Discourse analysis: Teun Van DijkHyperbole Example:(Broadwater Farm) Militant youths whomasterminded the Tottenham riots plannedthe mass murder of policemen in a blazingunderground trap.(Mail, 12 January)

UnderstatementExample:(CRE report on discrimination) HOME LOANS UNFAIR TO BLACKS(Telegraph, 16 October)

Discourse analysis: Teun Van DijkMetaphor, comparison and metonymiaExample:(Handsworth) FLAMES OF WRATH IN THE CITY OF FEAR (Mail, 11 September)Example:(Handsworth) Police chief tells of riot locusts in Handsworth(Times, 18 September)Example:re. Mrs Jarrett the riot woman (Mail, 29 November)

Discourse analysis: Teun Van DijkDenial (Modality)

Example:The woman was recently found guilty of racial harassment by a council disciplinary tribunal because she allegedly caused offence to a black member of the union. (Times, 6 August)

Example:(Black man sues club for discrimination) claiming his performance was cancelled because of his colour.(Telegraph, 16 August)

Discourse analysis: Norman Faircloth

Discourse analysis can be understood as an attempt to show systematic links between texts, discourse practices, and socio-cultural practices.

Representations are a long-standing concern in debates about bias, manipulation, and ideology in the media, but identities and relations have received less attention. The wider social impact of the media is to do with what sorts of social identities, what versions of self, they project and what cultural values (be it consumerism, individualism or a cult of personality) these entail.

And it is to do with how social relationships are defined, especially social relationships between the mass of the population who constitute audiences for the most popular media output and people like politicians, scientists, church leaders, and broadcasters themselves. Norman Faircloth, (1995)Media Discourse. Edward Arnold, p. 17.Construction of relations and identities leads to focus on:Linguistic systems of mood and modalityInteractional control features, including turn-taking

Summary/Conclusion

Language-Culture-RepresentationSaussure/Linguistics to SemioticsDiscourse Theory but note commonsense, linguistic and social theoretical approachesPower/ideology/language/discourseBut also: relationships/identities how discourse positions us.

DAY 4

More Fact than Fiction14*

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A Novel Perspective14*

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Reading and Writing14*

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What time is it?14*

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14*DIAGOLIC AND INTERTEXTUALITY[A novel] is made in the head, and has to be remade in the head by whoever reads it, who will always remake it differently.(Byatt 214)

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14*SCRIPTSIn all Western countries, the restaurant script is very much the same. It involves the following:

Seating, Menu, Waiter, Meal, Payment, Tipping, Departure

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14*It is the language of intimacy, the language of no pretentions. The words are simple and the grammar is simple.

The writing is not planned, but just happens, in a stream of consciousness kind of wayyou are there.

The sentences are short and choppy. If there is conjunction it is coordination, not subordination.

It is the language of the loosened tie and the rolled up shirt sleeves, with no pretentious multi-syllable or low-frequency words.

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14*Being egocentric, it is subjective, and whether it is written from the author participant or the author omniscient point of view, it is concerned with communicating peoples innermost feelings.

Tough language is the language of fiction, and therefore the process of in medias res is totally appropriate to this styleIn the late summer of that year we lived in a house in a village that looked across the river and the plain to the mountain.

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14*SWEET LANGUAGESweet language is the language of advertisers. Walker Gibson calls this language AROMA (Advertising Rhetoric of Madison Avenue).

Sweet language is listener-oriented in an attempt to seduce listeners into buying products they dont want or need.

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14*It is language full of innovative spellings, creative grammar, and wild punctuation.

Sweet writing contains many sentence fragments, and would rather flaunt a grammatical rule than conform to it: Winston tastes good like a cigarette should. What do you want, good grammar, or good taste?

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14*Sweet language is the language of sensationalism, the language of superlatives and hyperbole.

It is the language of diversion; it plays tricks on the reader with its puns, its word coinages, its humor, its packaging, its sex, and other aspects which have nothing to do with the product itself.

It is informal, or sometimes even intimate or cutesy in tone.

Contractions, clippings, blendings, and deletions abound, making it all the more cryptic and intimate.

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14*STUFFY LANGUAGEWhere tough language is I-oriented, and sweet language is you-oriented, stuffy language is it-oriented.

It is the language of laboratory experiments , of research papers and theses and dissertations and scholarly books, and academia in general.

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14*Stuffy language is highly grammatical and highly formal.

The syntax contains a great deal of subordination, and the sentences are frequently long and complex.

Infinitives, gerunds, present and past participial constructions, nominative absolutes, perfect, progressive, and passive constructions are almost totally confined to this style of writing.

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14*It is an impersonal style to the extent that first-person pronouns are seldom allowed. For this and other reasons, passive constructions and impersonal constructions with abstract subjects are common.

Stuffy language is also the language of limitations, restrictions and qualifications because the writer doesnt want to make claims beyond the evidence.

Limiting (as opposed to descriptive) adjectives are frequent, as are prepositional phrases and relative clauses.

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14*!THE BIRMINGHAM RIOTS:REPORTED IN THREE DIFFERENT STYLESSTUFFY:

The police and firemen drove hundreds of rioting Negroes off the streets today with high pressure hoses and an armored car.(New York Times May 8, 1963)

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14*MORE INTERESTING:

Three times during the day, waves of shouting, rock-throwing Negroes had poured into the downtown business district, to be scattered and driven back by battering streams of water from high-pressure hoses and swinging clubs of policement and highway patrolmen.(New York Herald Tribune)

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14*POETIC:

The blaze of bombs, the flash of blades, the eerie glow of fire, the keening cries of hatred, the wild dance of terror at nightall this was Birmingham, Alabama.(Time, May 7, 1963)

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ConclusionNeed to analyze media texts against total systemConsider processes of production, content, reception and circulationComprehensive discourse analysis: Better understanding of generation and reproduction of social meanings through news media

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