Applied English Language Studies 318
Critical Discourse
Analysis
Theoretical Points of Departure in Critical Discourse
Analysis
What is discourse?
• Language above the level of the sentence
o Zellig Harris (1952) → coined the term ‘discourse analysis’
• Language in use
o Sounds like the definition of pragmatics
• Language used to mean something, do something, and be something → Gee (2011)
• Symbolic human interaction in its many forms → Bloor & Bloor (2007)
o Spoken language with its gesture, facial expression, and body language
o Written language and its images, sounds, and videos
Critical discourse analysis points of departure
• 1. Basic assumption of CDA → you cannot separate what you say/write and how you say/write it from
your beliefs, norms, and values (ie. ideologies)
o People say things in line with their ideologies → cannot separate what somebody says/writes
from what they believe about the world
• 2. Discourse always realises the interests, positions, perspectives, and values of the speaker/writer
o Always talking from a particular position
• 3. Every stretch of discourse contains both content and a tangible attitude/stance towards the
content → sometimes this cannot be hidden
o What is this sentence about?
o What does the speaker/writer feel about it?
• 4. The beliefs, attitudes, norms, and values that underlie discourse are often ‘out of sight’ rather than
explicitly states
o We may not even be consciously aware of the fact that we hold certain beliefs as we take them
to be self-evident
▪ Sometimes you consider your own belief as a fact → do not realise that other people see it
differently
o Reason why CDA needs to happen → identify these ideologies/attitudes
• 5. People’s beliefs, attitudes, and values divide them into discourse communities with people that
share those beliefs, attitudes, and values
o Most people belong to more than one discourse community
▪ Can map out your identity based on the discourse communities you belong to
1
,Applied English Language Studies 318
o Discourse communities are generally the source of ideologies
• 6. Ideologies are produced and reflected in the use of discourse
• 7. Thus, there is a dialectical relationship between language and thought, in which language reflects
and constructs our beliefs, norms, and values
o Two-way relationship
▪ We say reflects what we believe
▪ What we believe has been constructed over time by the discourse we have been exposed to
• 8. Society in general, and social and political issues specifically, are in this way constructed and
reflected in discourse → discursive (re)construction
o Discursively constructed over time
• 9. This includes power relationships and social relations, which are negotiated and performed
through discourse
o Discursively maintained and can be discursively challenged
• 10. The ‘powers that be’/’elites’ have a lot of control over the ways in which things are perceived in
society when they have control over the ways in which things are being discussed
o Eg. Trump, Apartheid SA, Nazi Germany, etc.
o Influence over consumers of mass media → controlling discourse means controlling the people
o Control society by controlling the language in which things are discussed (eg. censoring of the
press and media)
• 11. Language that reflects undesirable beliefs, norms, and values/social problems (eg. racism,
xenophobia, sexism, homophobia, etc.) can be identified, deconstructed, and addressed as a possible
source of undesirable attitudes
o CDA is interested in instances where language is used to persuade, manipulate, attack, oppress,
silence, control, marginalise, and exclude other people
▪ Texts that reflect undesirable social ideologies as well as texts that challenge these
ideologies
2
, Applied English Language Studies 318
Aims of Critical Discourse Analysis
What is CDA and why do we do it?
• CDA is the analysis of discursive (re)construction of ideas/attitudes/beliefs/values/ideologies →
refers to the ways in which they are formed, affirmed, and challenged through the ways in which
things are discussed/written about
o Uncover ways social issues are talked about and how that affects how we think about those issues
o Methodical way of looking at how ideology is reflected in and constructed by the way we talk
Bloor & Bloor (2007:12)
• Critical discourse analysts “see discourse both as a product of society and also as a dynamic and
changing force that is constantly influencing and re-constructing social practices and values… further,
critical discourse analysis (CDA) has much in common with critical social research, which has been
concerned with seeking out the origins of social problems and finding ways to analyse them
productively”
o Dialectical relationship between discourse and ideology → discourse constructs ideology
o Identify language that results in problematic social attitudes and actions → find a way to analyse
it in order to address these problems
Paltridge (2013:98)
• “CDA takes us beyond the level of description to a deeper understanding of texts and provides, as far as
might be possible, some kind of explanation of why a text is as it is and what it is aiming to do. It looks
at the relationship between discourse and society and aims to describe, interpret and explain this
relationship…”
o Try to explain the dialectical relationship to other people in society who are not linguists
▪ Show others how they can use language to resist ideologies
• “…It is through discourse that many ideologies are formulated, reinforced and reproduced. CDA aims to
provide a way of exploring this, and in turn challenging some of the hidden and out of sight social,
cultural, and political ideologies and values that underlie texts”
o Gives people the tools to challenge ideologies and discriminatory language
Strauss and Feiz (2014:312)
• “CDA uses micro-level analysis of discourse (words, phrases, conceptual metaphors) to uncover the
[discursive] processes by which macro-level ideologies of power abuse, control, hegemony, dominance,
exclusion, injustice, and inequality are created, re-created, and perpetuated in social life – processes
which are often ‘naturalised’ and take for granted as common sense notions…”
o Micro → the language itself
o Macro → society, power, hegemony etc.
o Linking the micro to the macro → cause-and-effect relationship between language and society
▪ What CDA aims to make clear
• “…the aims of CDA-based work are to uncover these processes, to make them visible and clear, to explain
them, and consequently encourage resistance against them and to effect social change”
o Link between the micro and macro is made clear in order to encourage resistance and social
change
Aims of critical discourse analysis
• 1. To identify, analyse, and critique discourse practices that reflect or construct social problems such
as injustice, inequality, prejudice, or suffering
3
Critical Discourse
Analysis
Theoretical Points of Departure in Critical Discourse
Analysis
What is discourse?
• Language above the level of the sentence
o Zellig Harris (1952) → coined the term ‘discourse analysis’
• Language in use
o Sounds like the definition of pragmatics
• Language used to mean something, do something, and be something → Gee (2011)
• Symbolic human interaction in its many forms → Bloor & Bloor (2007)
o Spoken language with its gesture, facial expression, and body language
o Written language and its images, sounds, and videos
Critical discourse analysis points of departure
• 1. Basic assumption of CDA → you cannot separate what you say/write and how you say/write it from
your beliefs, norms, and values (ie. ideologies)
o People say things in line with their ideologies → cannot separate what somebody says/writes
from what they believe about the world
• 2. Discourse always realises the interests, positions, perspectives, and values of the speaker/writer
o Always talking from a particular position
• 3. Every stretch of discourse contains both content and a tangible attitude/stance towards the
content → sometimes this cannot be hidden
o What is this sentence about?
o What does the speaker/writer feel about it?
• 4. The beliefs, attitudes, norms, and values that underlie discourse are often ‘out of sight’ rather than
explicitly states
o We may not even be consciously aware of the fact that we hold certain beliefs as we take them
to be self-evident
▪ Sometimes you consider your own belief as a fact → do not realise that other people see it
differently
o Reason why CDA needs to happen → identify these ideologies/attitudes
• 5. People’s beliefs, attitudes, and values divide them into discourse communities with people that
share those beliefs, attitudes, and values
o Most people belong to more than one discourse community
▪ Can map out your identity based on the discourse communities you belong to
1
,Applied English Language Studies 318
o Discourse communities are generally the source of ideologies
• 6. Ideologies are produced and reflected in the use of discourse
• 7. Thus, there is a dialectical relationship between language and thought, in which language reflects
and constructs our beliefs, norms, and values
o Two-way relationship
▪ We say reflects what we believe
▪ What we believe has been constructed over time by the discourse we have been exposed to
• 8. Society in general, and social and political issues specifically, are in this way constructed and
reflected in discourse → discursive (re)construction
o Discursively constructed over time
• 9. This includes power relationships and social relations, which are negotiated and performed
through discourse
o Discursively maintained and can be discursively challenged
• 10. The ‘powers that be’/’elites’ have a lot of control over the ways in which things are perceived in
society when they have control over the ways in which things are being discussed
o Eg. Trump, Apartheid SA, Nazi Germany, etc.
o Influence over consumers of mass media → controlling discourse means controlling the people
o Control society by controlling the language in which things are discussed (eg. censoring of the
press and media)
• 11. Language that reflects undesirable beliefs, norms, and values/social problems (eg. racism,
xenophobia, sexism, homophobia, etc.) can be identified, deconstructed, and addressed as a possible
source of undesirable attitudes
o CDA is interested in instances where language is used to persuade, manipulate, attack, oppress,
silence, control, marginalise, and exclude other people
▪ Texts that reflect undesirable social ideologies as well as texts that challenge these
ideologies
2
, Applied English Language Studies 318
Aims of Critical Discourse Analysis
What is CDA and why do we do it?
• CDA is the analysis of discursive (re)construction of ideas/attitudes/beliefs/values/ideologies →
refers to the ways in which they are formed, affirmed, and challenged through the ways in which
things are discussed/written about
o Uncover ways social issues are talked about and how that affects how we think about those issues
o Methodical way of looking at how ideology is reflected in and constructed by the way we talk
Bloor & Bloor (2007:12)
• Critical discourse analysts “see discourse both as a product of society and also as a dynamic and
changing force that is constantly influencing and re-constructing social practices and values… further,
critical discourse analysis (CDA) has much in common with critical social research, which has been
concerned with seeking out the origins of social problems and finding ways to analyse them
productively”
o Dialectical relationship between discourse and ideology → discourse constructs ideology
o Identify language that results in problematic social attitudes and actions → find a way to analyse
it in order to address these problems
Paltridge (2013:98)
• “CDA takes us beyond the level of description to a deeper understanding of texts and provides, as far as
might be possible, some kind of explanation of why a text is as it is and what it is aiming to do. It looks
at the relationship between discourse and society and aims to describe, interpret and explain this
relationship…”
o Try to explain the dialectical relationship to other people in society who are not linguists
▪ Show others how they can use language to resist ideologies
• “…It is through discourse that many ideologies are formulated, reinforced and reproduced. CDA aims to
provide a way of exploring this, and in turn challenging some of the hidden and out of sight social,
cultural, and political ideologies and values that underlie texts”
o Gives people the tools to challenge ideologies and discriminatory language
Strauss and Feiz (2014:312)
• “CDA uses micro-level analysis of discourse (words, phrases, conceptual metaphors) to uncover the
[discursive] processes by which macro-level ideologies of power abuse, control, hegemony, dominance,
exclusion, injustice, and inequality are created, re-created, and perpetuated in social life – processes
which are often ‘naturalised’ and take for granted as common sense notions…”
o Micro → the language itself
o Macro → society, power, hegemony etc.
o Linking the micro to the macro → cause-and-effect relationship between language and society
▪ What CDA aims to make clear
• “…the aims of CDA-based work are to uncover these processes, to make them visible and clear, to explain
them, and consequently encourage resistance against them and to effect social change”
o Link between the micro and macro is made clear in order to encourage resistance and social
change
Aims of critical discourse analysis
• 1. To identify, analyse, and critique discourse practices that reflect or construct social problems such
as injustice, inequality, prejudice, or suffering
3
