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Discourse Analysis In Linguistics

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What is Discourse Analysis?

Discourse analysis is basically a common term for a range of approaches to analyze written, vocal, or sign language use or any significant semiotic event.

Discourse analysis is usually viewed as language sentence or the clause. It is the look of linguistics that's concerned about how we build up meaning in larger communicative, instead of grammatical units. It studies meaning in text, paragraph and conversation, rather than in single sentence.

Discourse analysis definition :
According to Wikipedia definition, discourse analysis “is a common term for a number of approaches to analyzing written, spoken or signed language use”.<a href=\"#_ftn1\" title=\"\" data-mce-href=\"#_ftn1\">[1]</a> As this …show more content…

The discourse analyst focuses on “an investigation of what that language is used for”, it means purpose and aim of communication, as has actually been mentioned before (Yule 1983: 1). Levels of analysis
Crystal (1997: 15) mentions a few levels of analysis which are highly important for a detailed analysis of a text. Each level represents one area of linguistics such as lexicology or phonetics and phonology. On the basis of these areas different levels of analysis can be distinguished: phonetic and phonological, graphological, grammatical, lexical. Verdonk mentions importance of pragmatics and claims that “pragmatics is concerned with the meaning of language in discourse, that is, when it is used in an appropriate context to get particular aims” (Verdonk 2002: …show more content…

A piece of language can be acknowledged as a text “because of its location in a particular context” (Verdonk 2002: 17). It means it does not rely on the length of the text, even single sentence units or single word units, such as e.g. ‘danger’, ‘keep left’ etc. are considered to be a text. These short texts are “meaningful in themselves”, it means “they are complete in terms of communicative meaning” (Verdonk 2002: 17). Verdonk also emphasizes a significant role of context because the same text can offer different information if it appears in different context.

Context
As has actually been already mentioned, context is very important for analysing a text, hence “the discourse analyst has to take account of the context in which a piece of discourse appears” (Yule 1982: 27). Context can be described as “the environment” or “circumstances by which language is used” (Yule 1982: 27).

The term discourse analysis is very ambiguous. It refers mainly to the linguistic analysis of naturally occurring connected speech or written discourse. Roughly speaking, it refers to attempts to study the organization of language above the sentence or above the clause, and therefore to study larger linguistic units, such as conversational exchanges or written texts. It follows that discourse analysis is also concerned with language use in social contexts, and in particular with interaction or dialogue between

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In Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz Mujerista Discourse: A platform for Latinas’ Subjugated Knowledge, she talks about the term “Lo Cotidiano” which translates to “the everyday” (Isasi-Diaz pg. 46), and she explains how this term is more complex than the actual meaning. She also explains that ‘lo cotidiano’ and the way every person lives their ‘cotidiano’ connects with the main idea of Mujerista Discoourse. In her writing, she discusses some personal experiences which bring a better understanding to the true meaning of lo ‘cotidiano’. Isasi-Diaz gives an in-depth explanation to what ‘lo cotidiano’ really means, or what it should mean.

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In the article "The Concept of a Discourse Community" by John Swales (1990). He aimed to define the meaning of a discourse community; then he carefully deconstructs discourse community into six fundamental attributes that are important for recognizing a discourse community. Swales’ definition of a discourse community is a group that has objectives or purposes, and utilize communication to accomplish those objectives. He states that a discourse community is presented as a more practical and purposeful gathering than speech fraternity or speech group. The six essential characteristics that Swales (1990) belief to be the core of a discourse community are its goals, intercommunication, participation, genres, Lexis, and expertise.

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The main advantages of the experimental method is the ability to control what each participant experiences and this allows researchers to test precise and accurate hypotheses and draw conclusions about how one variable affects another. The main disadvantage of is that it cannot replicate or reproduce the complexity of real life and it can miss social rules and other factors that could establish whether a bystander intervenes or not. The discourse analysis, on the other hand can capture a richer and more varied picture of people’s experiences and looks at people’s actual experiences. However, it cannot provide general rules about human behaviour that could be applied to more than one

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The audience is anyone who is listening to the discourse or who a writer seems to have in mind (Rhetorical situations and their constituents). This may affect what you say or how you say it. If you are having a discourse with your buddies you may be loud and use vulgar language; however, if you are in a room with professionals you will speak in a polite manner and with a professional tone. Constraints are another complicated aspect of a discourse just as the exigence. Constraints are “limitations on the rhetor” these can be either positive or negative (Rhetorical situations and their constituents).

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