Critical Discourse Analysis of a Political Speech

Critical Discourse Analysis of a Political Speech

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Assessment Task:

A single assignment of 5,000 words

I. THE ASSIGNMENT: Analysis of (a) stretch(es) of discourse data

The task is designed to assess the extent to which you have met the module objectives. These refer not only to theoretical knowledge/understanding but also to the practical ability to apply your knowledge to the analysis of real language material. Therefore, the task requires you to carry out some actual analysis of discourse. You may use data in any language(s), but for the benefit of the assessors, data not in English must be accompanied by an English ‘gloss’ (i.e. a word-by-word literal translation, which is usually given in ‘interlinear’ format, appearing between the lines of the original).

If you want to do something that does not fall within the parameters set by any of the five tasks below (bearing in mind that you have some freedom to design each one in a variety of ways), you can propose an alternative; but you will have to persuade module teachers that your alternative is a relevant one and relates to the main module objectives. For instance, a theoretical essay with no practical analysis will not be acceptable.

II. WEIGHT: 100% of the final grade for the module.

III. Content of the Assignment:

IV. RECOMMENDED PROCEDURES

1. Collect (a) piece(s) of discourse data for analysis. You may choose to use classroom interaction data or those occurring in non-classroom-based contexts, such as radio/TV interviews, film excerpts, etc., or a combination of both. A piece of written discourse can also be selected. In all cases, you can choose to analyse one extended piece or several smaller pieces of coherent and cohesive data.
2. If working with spoken discourse, please fully transcribe your data and include all the linguistic (e.g. the use of such time fillers as ‘well’, ‘hmm’) and paralinguistic features (e.g. facial expressions and body gestures) that would be important in interpretation.
3. Analyse the transcriptions according to one or more than one of the discourse models introduced in the course. Identify key features of the discourse sample(s) and the discourse analytical model(s) that seem most appropriate for analysis and discussion. Do refer to relevant literature where appropriate.
4. Write up the report, and arrange the inclusion of the transcriptions and all other relevant materials in the appendix section.
5. Proof-read your work, including the conventions of making academic citations.

V. CONTENT OF THE REPORT

A. Background information of the discourse data
– Source of the data
– Situational Context, e.g. where, when, for what communicative purposes
– Whether the data are extracted from more extended pieces of communication (and the stage at which they are extracted) or they form a complete piece of communication on their own

B. Analysis of the discourse data
– Description and justification of the analytical model(s) that is/are adopted in analyzing the data, including any classification systems where appropriate, as well as the limitations in such analysis. Do refer to the relevant literature while doing your descriptions and justifications.
– Findings from the analysis according to the various analytical models adopted (you may want to present such findings, or part of them in table form)
– If you work with spoken data, please offer insights about how effective communication is achieved through the co-construction of the piece(s) of spoken discourse analyzed (at both the levels of linguistic and paralinguistic features) on part of the interlocutors involved, and possible reasons of any communication breakdowns (e.g. misunderstanding) if they exist in the data
– If you work with written data, you should seek to demonstrate how textual choices are being used to shape particular sets of claims about the world, the relationships between the text and audience (reader/hearer), as well as assumptions about social identities and practices.
– Influences of the roles of and the relationship between the interlocutors (e.g. between a superior and an inferior or between equals, between close friends or between strangers) and such other contextual factors as the mode of communication (e.g. a face-to-face chat or a phone call) on the actual instances of discourse within the analyzed piece(s) of data.

C. Reference List
– A full reference list of the articles, books or other sources you have mentioned in your report. (Please format your reference list according to academic conventions, e.g. the APA format)

VI. EXAMPLES OF APPROACHES

Analysis of a speech act
Choose a common category of speech act, such as requests, thanks, apologies, compliments. Using a notebook method, record as many naturally-occurring examples as possible. Analyze your data, paying attention to the following questions:

in what range of ways is the act performed linguistically?
Are there patterns of variation relating to the situation and participants (e.g. age, gender, relative status)?
How do your observations relate to existing research findings in pragmatics (e.g. politeness theory)?

If you wish, you may comment on the implications for teaching second language learners. You could also choose to design the analysis comparatively, by collecting examples in two different languages or from L1 and L2 users in one language, and analyzing the differences/similarities between the two samples.

Microanalysis of a speech event