Discourse Analysis

Using knowledge of the world in

Discourse analysis/
Representation of knowledge
 Revision
• the linearization problem
• What counts as a text?
•
Compare:
• ( the first sentence of a novel):
• Within five minutes, or 10 minutes, no more than that, three of the others
had called her on the telephone to ask her if she had heard that something
had happened out there. (Tom Wolfe, the Right Stuff)

• Self Employed Upholsterer

Free estimates. 332 5862

• Textuality standards:
• topic
• cohesion
• knowledge of the world (extralinguistic knowledge)
 Revision
Brown & Yule (linguistically oriented aproach to DA):
2 kinds of processing and comprehending discourse:
1. BOTTOM –UP: look at the meaning of the sentence and
words & build up a COMPOSITE MEANING
2. TOP- DOWN: look at the context and the previous sentences
and DECIDE WHAT THE NEXT SENTENCE IS LIKELY TO MEAN

2 types of analysis (Gee) :

a) FORM (structural aspects of language) – FUNCTION
(meaning- the sorts of meanings a form can fulfill or
INTERACTIONAL WORK (PURPOSES) IT CAN ACCOMPLISH)
analysis – correlations between them

b) LANGUAGE- CONTEXT analysis ( Gee: ‘meaning potential’)

• deals with SITUATED MEANING
 “Situated meaning”
'SITUATED MEANING' = meaning GROUNDED IN ACTUAL PRACTICES AND
EXPERIENCES

ANY GIVEN FORM has a POTENTIAL TO TAKE MUCH MORE SPECIFIC

MEANINGS IN A CONTEXT of use:
The coffee spilled, go and get a mop/ broom.
The coffee spilled, stack it again.
Coffee ice cream is good.

situated meanings can be TOOLS OF INQUIRY in DA

SITUATED MEANINGS: ‘patterns vs. assemblies

a) dependence on PATTERN RECOGNITION (mid-level generalization)
b) an image or PATTERN that we ASSEMBLE 'ON THE SPOT', as we communicate
in a given context, based on our construal of that context and on our past
experiences
we have EXPECTATIONS in contexts based on previous knowledge

the MIND-= 'pattern recognizer and builder, not a rule following

calculator.
 Formats for representing stored knowledge
FORMATS FOR REPRESENTING CONVENTIONAL KNOWLEDGE
Artificial Intelligence : frames, scripts
Psychology: scenarios, schemata, mental models

FRAMES (Marvin Minsky, Charles Fillmore)

- data structures selected from memory when encountering a new
situation
represent STEREOTYPED INFORMATION
contain 'slots' to be filled out by linguistic expressions ('fillers')
Example: the frame 'HOUSE'; SLOTS: ????
- DISCOURSE UNDERSTANDING as a process of FITTING WHAT
ONE IS TOLD (specific information) INTO THE FRAMEWORK
ESTABLISHED BY WHAT ONE ALREADY KNOWS (what you don't
need to be implicitely informed about):

When you go to the polling station, tell the clerk your name and
address.
 Formats (cont.)
SCHEMA
more general structure
FIXED, ORGANIZED background knowledge which LEADS US TO EXPECT OR PREDICT
ASPECTS in interpreting discourse
stereotypes of concepts
socio- culturally (pre-)determined
racial prejudice- schema- based
Different gender/ sex age/ ... groups activate different schemata to interpret the same
event:
Every Saturday night, four good friens get together. When Jerry, Mike, and Patt arrived, Karen was
sitting in her living room writing some notes. She quickly gathered the cards and stood up to greet
her friends at the door. They followed her into the living room but as usual they couldn't agree on
exactlywhat to play. Jerry eventually took a stand and set things up. Finally, they began to play.
Karen's recorder filled up the room with soft and pleasant music. Early in the evening, Mike noticed
Pat's hand and the many diamonds…

SCHEMATA imply a CONSTRUCTIVE PROCESS- INFORMATION from the discourse+

knowledge of the past experience (related to the one at hand) to BUILD A MENTAL
REPRESENTATION
SCHEMATA FOR LINGUISTIC KNOWLEDGE are SIMILAR TO LINGUISTIC FRAMES by
Minsky
 Discourse models
SITUATED MEANING pattern recognition vs. assemblies
SITUATED MEANINGS, RELATED TO PATTERNS - RELATIVE
TO THEORY OF A DOMAIN, i.e. in a CULTURAL/
DISCOURSE MODEL:

DISCOURSE MODELS= frames - largely UNCONSCIOUS

THEORIES/ BACKGROUND ASSUMPTIONS that help us
MAKE SENSE OF TEXTS and THE WORLD

GEE: DMs= images or storylines or descriptions or simplified

worlds in which prototypical events unfold. They are our first
thoughts or "taken- for- granted assumptions about what is
"typical" or "normal"
'bachelor'
the Pope, a thrice divorced man, Tarzan, gay men, a eunuch, a
young man in a coma?
imply a PERSPECTIVE ON THINGS
 Discourse models (cont.)
bases for PROTOTYPICAL SIMULATIONS in the mind that fit
the context

ROUTINIZE THINKING- provide GUIDELINES for assembling/

activating SITUATED MEANINGS OF WORDS
capture/ highlight main, SALIENT elements (as typical, normal),
BACKGROUND OTHERS;

PURPOSE- BUILT, FLEXIBLE:

The bride: I'm so happy.
The bride: I'm so scared.
UNTYPICAL CASES – special case simulations (e.g. a gay wedding)

DMs- acquired/ learned from EXPERIENCE formed,

determined by the SOCIAL and CULTURAL GROUPS WE
BELONG to
PROTOTYPICAL SIMULATIONS SUPPORT DISCOURSE
MODELS
 Discourse models & culture
what is taken as TYPICAL differs across SOCIAL AND CULTURAL
GROUPS OF PEOPLE
LINKED NETWORKS OF DMs help ORGANIZE THE THINKING AND
SOCIAL PRACTICES OF SOCIOCULTURAL GROUPS
- PEOPLE share PROTOTYPICAL SITUATIONS which enables
communication
- DMs at work in even the simplest cases of communication , with the
meaning of even the simplest words:

In a small town in Yucatán, a Mayan Shaman named Don Chabo is

sharing a meal with his daughter – in-law, Margot, and a visiting
anthropologist. They are all in Margot’s house. A young man,
named Yuum, approaches form the outside, and, standing at
the window, asks: “Is Don Chabo seated”. Margot replies: “ Go
over there. He is drinking. Go over there inside.”

DMs depend on LOCAL, 'ON-SITE' , SOCIAL and

DISCOURSE PRACTICES
 An example
A young woman talking about how she had ranked some
characters in a story she had heard in a class she was
taking at a university
(1) to her parents
Well, when I thought about it, I don't know, it seemed to me that Gregory should
be the most offensive. He showed no understanding for Abigail, when she told
him what she was forced to do. He was callous. He was hypocritical, in the sense
that he professed to love her, then acted like that.

(2) to her boyfriend

What an ass that guy was, you know, her boy friend. I should hope, if I ever did
that to see you, you would shoot the guy. He uses her and he says he loves her.
Roger never lies, you know what I mean?
 Discourse models and
conceptual metaphors
different settings- different models triggered and
associated with one another

flexibly organized, complex

often signalled by (interlocked) CONCEPTUAL

METAPHORS (TIME IS MONEY, ARGUMENT IS WAR)
 Discourse models and conceptual metaphors
Match the groups of expressions below with appropriate (source & target) domains
making up the conceptual metaphor (TARGET DOMAIN IS SOURCE DOMAIN)
argued to underlie their use.
MORALITY TIME WAR, MONEY SOCIETY LIQUID BODY CLEANLINESS
MEDICINE/ILLNESS, MOVING OBJECT, RESOURCE
1) He's Mr. Clean. 5) He did it in three minutes.
He has a blot on his past/ a clean past. In 1968. . .
His reputation is besmirched. We're well into the century.
He doesn't want to get his hands dirty. He's like something out of the last century.
His record is spotless.
2) liquid assets 6) She spends her time unwisely.
Their money is all dried up The diversion should buy him some time.
He's just sponging off of you (absorbing cash) Time is money
He's solvent/insolvent We're almost out of time.
3) the health of society Don't waste time.
social ills Find a better use for your time.
social death; the death of society 7) When Tuesday comes. . .
social recovery Three o'clock is approaching.
the nation is in a depression Thursday passed without incident.
the head of society/ head of state The witching hour is near.
the body politic
nurse our nation back to health
4) The body is not immune to invasion
He was attacked by an unknown virus.
The patient finally gave up (the battle).
The doctors tried to wipe out the infection.
Discourse models and ideology
Discourse models and racism
 Discourse models- characteristics
Discourse models:
partial, inconsistent, not fully formed
We are all MEMBERS OF MULTIPLE DISCOURSES
we are influenced by many such models, in everyday
life, by the media, groups, institutions
Individuals can hold COMPETING AND CONFLICTING
DISCOURSE MODELS, values that serve other people's
interests better than their own
 Division of discourse models
Gee (2005) according to
- how they are put to use
- the EFFECTS they have on us:
a) ESPOUSED MODELS: we CONSCIOUSLY ACQUIRE
THEM
b) EVALUATIVE MODELS: CONSCIOUSLY or
UNCONSCIOUSLY used TO JUDGE OURSELVES OR
OTHERS
c) MODELS IN (INTER)ACTION: CONSCIOUSLY OR
UNCONSCIOUSLY GUIDE OUR ACTUAL ACTIONS
& INTERACTION: about 'appropriate' attitudes,
viewpoints, (inter)acting, ways of 'talking,
listening, reading, communicating
 Discourse models in action- example
“people are simultaneously the products and the producers of discourse”
(Edley and Wetherell, 1997, p. 206)
connection SOCIAL CLASS- DISCOURSE MODELS
American model of success (D’Andrade):

“It seems to be the case that Americans think that if one has the ability, and if,
because of competition or one’s own strong drive, one works hard at achieving
high goals, one will reach an outstanding level of accomplishment. And when one
reaches this level, one will be recognized as a success, which brings prestige and
satisfaction. “
white- collar workers vs. blue- collar workers

career choices (base TO ACT UPON) vs. a set

of values ( sth. to JUDGE THEMSELVES ON)

consequences: blue- collar workers vs. white-

collar workers ?

individualism

additional BREADWINNER MODEL

 Discourse models as tools of inquiry
When confronted with a piece of talk, writing, action or interaction, we should ask the
following question when it comes to DISCOURSE MODELS they are based on:
1. What discourse models are relevant here? What must I, as an analyst, assume that people
feel, value, and believe, consciously or not,in order to talk (write), act, and/ or interact
this way? Or “What ‘theories’ must the person consciously or unconsciously hold such
that they are using these Situated meanings?”
2 Are there differences here between the Discourse models that are affecting espoused
beliefs and those that are affecting actual actions and practices? What sorts of
Discourse models, if any, are being used here to make value judgments about oneself or
others?
3 How consistent are the relevant Discourse models here? Are there competing or
conflicting Discourse models at play? Whose interests are the Discourse models
representing?
4 What other Discourse models are related to the ones most active here? Are there "master
models" at work?
5 What sorts of texts, media, experiences, interactions, and/or institutions could have given
rise to these Discourse models?
6 How are the relevant Discourse models here helping to reproduce, transform, or create
social, cultural, institutional, and/or political relationships? What Discourses and
Conversations are these Discourse models helping to reproduce, transform, or create?