introduction to discourse theory

8/12/2019 Introduction to Discourse Theory

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Introduction to Discourse Theory

Biljana Radi-Bojani, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Novi Sad

[email protected]


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What is discourse?

discourse = a conversation or text discourse = collection of texts or conversations

discourse = a shared way of talking or creating texts

(code)

narrow andwide definitions of discourse

narrow

discourse as opposite to text: written, spoken, mediated

discourse (e.g. Internet), visual discourse wide

discourse as a social practice


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Introduction

language: often defined as a system of arbitrarysymbols used for human communication

knowing the grammar and lexicon of a language

does not imply that we will be able to use it correctly

these systems are used in social contexts in other words, we need to look at howlanguage is

used and whatit is used for


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Construction via language

when we speak or write, we craft what we have tosay to fit the situation or context in which we are

communicating

also, how we speak or write creates that very

situation or context power of languagecreates a social reality and is

shaped by a social reality

vs.


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Identity

when we speak or write, we use language resourcesto project ourselves as a certain kind of person, who

is different in different circumstances

we also project ourselves as engaged in different

activities in different circumstances


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Exercise

story: Abigail wants to get across a river to see her true

love, Gregory. A river boat captain named Roger

says he will take her only if she agrees to sleep with

him. In desperation to see Gregory, Abigail agrees todo so. But when she arrives and tells Gregory what

she had done, he disowns her and sends her away.

.....

group A: rewrite as a formal report group B: rewrite as a Facebook status

group C: retell your friend

group D: retell your teacher


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Discourse

discoursebriefly defined as coherent spoken orwritten language used in a context for the purposes

of communicating something

naturally occurring language

key words: coherent/ cohesive

spoken

written

context

purpose


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Coherence

ideas that are arranged in a clear and logical wayare coherent

when a text is unified and coherent, the reader can

easily understand the main points

cohesion: the links that hold a text together and giveit meaning; it is related to the broader concept of

coherence


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Example A

One day her mother said to her, "Come, Little Red

Cap, take this piece of cake and bottle of wine and

bring them to your grandmother. She's sick and

weak, and this will strengthen her. Get an early

start []

Example B

And this will strengthen her. Take this piece of

cake. One day her mother said to her. She's sick.


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Speaking vs. writing


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Context

generally defined as a situation in which an act ofcommunication takes place

on the one hand, it narrows down the choice of

linguistic means (for the speaker)

on the other hand, it helps us predict what kind oflanguage will be used (for the hearer)

what influences the choices:

genre

purpose of communication

relationship between the speaker and hearer

message content


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Purpose

no act of communication is devoid of purpose it all happens for a reason

sometimes the reason is straighforward and obvious

sometimes it is hidden deep in the discourse

in the latter case, it usually hides an ideology or an

intention of the speaker/ writer


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Discourse as a social practice

discourses of peace discourses of food

medical discourse

...

A discourse is "a language or system of

representation that has developed socially in order to

make and circulate a coherent set of meanings

about an important topic area."


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e.g. Discourses about Animals

1. Animals as living creatures, cute creatures, pets.They have feelings (anti abuse of animals)

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Animals as pets Anti abuse of Animals

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Animals as delicious food

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How is reality shaped by/in discourse?

realities = social practices action & experience

represented in discourse

construction of a reality

language mediates experiences

people behind messages (the sender) mediate

experiences through language


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Socially constructed knowledge

knowledge developed in specific social contexts, andin ways which are appropriate to the interests of

social actors in these contexts

contexts:

large (e.g. a company, the socialistic ideology) small (e.g. family, between best friends)

institutionalized (e.g. mass media)

discourses are resources for representation,

knowledge about some aspect of reality, which canbe drawn upon when that aspect has to be

represented


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Plurality of discourse

there can be several different ways of knowing andhence also of representing the same object of

knowledge

different ways of making sense of the same aspect

of reality can include or exclude different things, and serve

different interests


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evidence for the existence of a given discoursecomes from texts, from what has been said or written

more specifically it comes from the similarity

between the things that are said and written in

dif ferent texts about the sameaspect of reality it is on the basis of such similar statements,

repeated or paraphrased in different texts and

dispersed among these texts in different ways, that

we can reconstruct the knowledge which theyrepresent


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Examples

MPs rally to Ashdown- - - -

ITS PADDY PANTSDOWN

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

TORY MP FOUND DEAD IN STOCKINGS ANDSUSPENSERS

- - - -

MPs death shocks Tories

Fear of fresh scandal after

senior party sources talk of murder


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The Anatomy of Discourse (1)

Ac t ions : the things people do, the activities thatmake up the social practice and their chronologicalorder

Manner : the way in which (some of or all of) theactions are performed. (e.g. slowly, energetically,

graciously, based on anger) Ac tors : people (also animals) involved in the

practice, and then different roles in which they areinvolved (for instance active and passive roles)

Presentat ion: the way in which actors are dressedand groomed. All social pratices have their rules ofpresentation, although they differ in kind and degreeof strictness

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The Anatomy of Discourse (2)

Resources: the tools and materials needed to enacta social practice

Times:Inevitably social practices are timed, they

take place at certain times, and they last for certain

amounts of time Spaces: the spaces where the social action takes

place, including the way they should be arranged to

make the practice possible

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in reality all these elements must be part of the waya social practice is actually enacted

but texts/discourses may include only some of them,

and so do the discourses on which these texts draw

their content knowledge is selective

what it selects depends on the interests and

purposes of the sender(s) (institutions) that foster the

knowledge being critically literate is being aware of this fact!


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Strategies of transformation of reality

1. Exc lus ion :discourses can exclude elements of social

practice2. Rearrangement :discourses can rearrange the

elements of social practices, for instance when itdetemporalizes elements which in reality have aspecific order, or when it imposes a specific order on

actions which in reality do not need to take place in anyspecific order

3. Add i t ion : discourses can add elements to therepresentation (purposes, evaluations, legitimations)

4. Subst i tu t ion : discourse substitutes concepts with other

concepts

being critically literate is being aware of the strategiesthat are applied in order to construct reality

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