#Discourse Analysis

[sapere-aude5]

Every once in a while, I find myself returning to two core texts: The Body in Pain: The Making and Unmaking of the World by Elaine Scarry and the essay A Dangerous Individual by Michel Foucault.

..........

In the Body in Pain, Scarry explores the relationship between physical pain, language, and power. Her central argument is that pain is uniquely difficult to express and, as a result, it isolates individuals. Pain has a destructive capacity—it can unmake a person's world, reducing them to a state where communication fails. Conversely, creativity and expression have the power to remake the world, to construct shared meaning.

Scarry also delves into how pain is used as a tool of power—most explicitly in contexts like torture. For her, torture is the deliberate unmaking of a person's world, an extreme form of control and domination. The inexpressibility of pain, its resistance to language, becomes a means through which authority asserts itself.

Foucault's essay A Dangerous Individual explores the relationship between power, knowledge, and the concept of the "criminal" or "deviant." His analysis is rooted in the idea that society defines and categorizes individuals to regulate behavior, creating and controlling "dangerous" identities. This labeling process is a method of discipline that extends beyond the legal system into broader cultural and social norms.

Foucault sees power not merely as repressive but as productive—it generates knowledge, shapes identities, and constructs norms. The "dangerous individual" becomes a category through which power operates, justifying surveillance and control. Foucault also connects this to the management of the body, arguing that the body is a site where power is exercised and inscribed.

[lesbianlinguist]

Wrote a really kick ass paper on medical discourse around cochlear implants and how it's negatively affecting sign languages

Will this be the first one I can get published??? I hope

[rotenotes]

Saul Newman - The Politics of Postanarchism

The Politics of Postanarchism Saul Newman In recent years radical politics has been faced with a number of new challenges, not least of which has been the reemergence of the aggressive, authoritarian state in its new paradigm of security and bio-politics. The ‘war on terror’ serves as the latest guise for the aggressive reassertion of the principle state sovereignty, beyond the traditional limits…

[fruit-bat-gran]

discourse analysis can suck my balls

[livinthebookshelf]

Scholarship can make a significant contribution to enlightenment, yet ‘scholarship’ needs to take a stance and express itself in comprehensible ways, in many different public spheres and via different genres of text and talk.

Ruth Wodak (Interviewed by Andreas Schulz)

[beyondthediscourse]

Beyond the Discourse

An introduction to discourse analysis:

Since this blog is dedicated to discourse analysis, it is only logical to explain what discourse analysis is before venturing to other subjects. In short, DA studies the ways sentences and utterances (speech) go together to make texts and interactions and how those texts and interactions fit into our social world. It can be defined in three different ways:

- Language beyond the level of a sentence.

- Language behaviors linked to social practices.

- Language as a system of thought.

There are many dimensions to analyzing any kind of discourse, no matter the length. Even something as short as the word ‘no’ can carry implications that go beyond its meaning on the surface level, only those who are socially savvy can pick up on it— and discourse analysts, of course. Which is what sparked my fascination with the field, resulting in the birth of this blog! That, and the fact that this blog is part of my assessment for the discourse analysis course that I am currently taking. 

Why the name “beyond the discourse?”

I felt like it was a fitting name, since the word ‘discourse’ does not simply mean ‘conversation’ alone, it goes beyond that. It includes things like social contexts, the person who is using the language and under what conditions it is being used, the receiver and many more aspects. I also chose it as part of a chain my friends and I decided to do as one named her blog “Beyond the Word” and the other named it “Beyond the Sentence”.

I will be sharing my analysis of discourse that either occurred in my day to day life or appears in things I find interesting. So basically, discourse analysis with my personality sprinkled on top.

[alaaalakari]

Analyzing Signs

The text has been analyzed based on the three approaches.

The text is divided into four sections with a sign that clarifies the text. The clauses are written clearly with a reason given to demonstrate the aim which is a warning. The first section is the title ⚠️ CAUTION ⚠️ is written in bold on a yellow background to attract the readers, with capitalization letters and between two symbols ( a black exclamation mark within a yellow triangle) to warn of potential danger. The second section is written in bold and red to emphasize the danger and tells the reader that the surface is hot. The third section is also written in bold but in a smaller font size to tell the reader the consequence of touching the hot surface. The fourth section is written in bold as well with a bigger font size that asks the reader to not touch.

The second section tells why while the fourth section is an order. As the third section clarifies the consequence/ reason. No punctuation marks were used. The language used to state passersby or visitors as in a public place. The language is tended to be formal and written by an employer to be directed to the general public.

[bibliomorgan]

People are finally getting what means "Discourse analysis", one of the most fascinating themes from Linguistics.

Further reading authors as: Pêcheux, Orlandi, Chauí, Althusser, Foucault (mah fave dude!) , Fairclough, Gregolin, Possenti, van Dijk and that french guy Maingueneau, who wrote about how media discourse was being used to shape a reality defined by the US propaganda (we also call this fucked up reality as "capitalism") to explain WTF media does these atrocious headlines.

There is a REASON and WHY they do headlines like that.

Fascism and capitalism walks hand by hand every single moment in our History, language as one of the most precious mistress.

Read more:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_discourse_analysis?wprov=sfla1

Academics are studying about this language phenomenon since the very Aristotle, I'm happy to knowledge FINALLY people are noticing these nuances and WHAT??

Go ahead people, the revolution started!

“You simply cannot fit more America into a single incident than a man dying a horrifying death in protest of war crimes while a first responder screams at cops to stop pointing their guns at him and go get fire extinguishers. If you were to pick a single moment in history to sum up the essence and expression of the US empire, that would be it.”

Caitlin Johnstone, The Most American Thing That Has Ever Happened

[rogermoorepoet]

What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?

Daily writing promptWhat are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?View all responses What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life? A simplistic question in so many ways as so many definitions are needed. How long is long? 100 years? 200 years? Back to 1066 to watch the Battle of Hastings? 1588 to see the Spanish Armada sailing up the channel? 1815 to see…

[opstandelse]

Saul Newman - The Politics of Postanarchism

The Politics of Postanarchism Saul Newman In recent years radical politics has been faced with a number of new challenges, not least of which has been the reemergence of the aggressive, authoritarian state in its new paradigm of security and bio-politics. The ‘war on terror’ serves as the latest guise for the aggressive reassertion of the principle state sovereignty, beyond the traditional limits…

[xxscarletxrosexx]

A Linguistic Analysis: Manga Translation (EN/JP/TWN) Comparison of Chapter 90.1 | Part 3

This is written in response to @connoisseursdecomfort's post Comparing Versions of Short Mission 11

((I realized that I should have just made this into a post because my response would be lost as a reblog. And it did... OTL

Also, this is an updated version with more insight/details))

Consider this is as a part 3 of my Linguistic Analysis posts on Spy x Family's Ch. 90.1 or Short Mission 11.

Part 1: A Linguistic Analysis of the Spelling "Ania" and "Anya"...

Part 2: "Ania" is the closest to an identity reveal

This analysis contains spoilers from Chapter 90.1 / Short Mission 11!

What's so interesting about the discourse analysis amongst Japanese, Taiwanese, and English translations is the hedging (word choices that lessen the directness of a dialogue) langauge that Loid uses. It is more clear in the Japanese ("by the way") and Taiwanese ("it came to mind") translations. Whereas, English's hedging is found in "...right?" What the three of them do share in common is that Loid's discourse is pointing to active voice by stating "your name is spelled A-N-Y-A". Apply all of these translations below:

(ENG) Your name is spelled A-N-Y-A, right?

(JP) By the way, your name is spelled A-N-Y-A.

(TW) It came to mind, your name is spelled A-N-Y-A.

It is consistent that Loid's tone is holding authority by demonstrating his knowledge on Ostanian orthography based off the transcriptions he's seen of Anya's name registered as "A-N-Y-A" which was spelled by her previous Ostanian adopted parents. So Twilight feels confident that the spelling of her name MUST be "Anya."

Another thing I wanted to add on to @connoisseursdecomfort's observation is catching loss of translation, which is so unfortunately common. English translation omits translations mainly because some expressions or dialogue that are common in a language (Japanese and Taiwanese) would be perceive differently in English-speaking countries (USA, UK, AUS, CAN, etc.). This is called cultural discount.

It's the reason why Squid Game English dub missed out on many jokes that are play on words in the Korean dub. It is also the reason why a lot of American jokes are not understood by non-English speakers OTL

But this is a general phenomenon because English native consumers would find the expression strange simply because we do not have this style reflected in our discourse. The best example is when @_mika60 translated the omitted text "Anya's heart stirred at the mention of her own name."

To an American (possibly English natives in general, but I can't really speak on behalf of British, Canadians, nor Australians beause their English may be slightly different in terms of cultural lifestyle/upbringing), this expression can be perceived as corny/purple-prosey. Because American discourse don't generally have this emotionally-charged reflective discourse. Hence, omitted. Which is unfortunate because it says so much about how Loid's spelling affected Anya's feelings. So this is a perfect example of cultural discount.

An example of loss in translation is the omission of Anya's text which explains why she can't carve out her name is due to feeling insecure about her bad handwriting. (Again, this is character analysis that English-reading consumers missed out on! Because anything written in the manga is deemed canon.) Whereas English, we completely omit that detail because English native speakers don't need that extra dialogue. The English discourse is typically straight to the point and English native consumers draw inferences from icons (images/illustrations).

Based off my explanation, this is how I see the above picture as an American consumer (using a think-aloud method):

Anya says, "I can't do it right..." and she looks frustrated as illustrated by the swirl above her head.

Her brows are furrowed which supports that she's annoyed/frustrated/angry.

Her cheeks... are they blushes? Is she embarrassed? I can't really tell.

She's also a 4 y/o or was it 5 y/o child (she lied being 6, right?) so it's obvious she probably might be annoyed because she can't draw straight lines.

Because she's an infant, I'm sure she doesn't have the strength to draw clean lines.

Based off my thought process above, do I think OR am I convinced that Anya feels insecure? No.

Can it be argued that she's insecure? Yes, absolutely.

If I were to talk to someone who posits Anya may be insecure because of his/her knowledge of children behavior and/or mannerism, then I would be convinced. However, I would arrive to this assimilation through negotiating observations and exchanging knowledge of children behavioral mannerism. However, this would become more of headcanon if it wasn't explicitly stated in the manga (keep it mind that the Japanese translation DOES explicitly state that she's insecure because of her bad handwriting, so yes, it is canon that Anya is insecure of her bad handwriting).

Anyways...

I love translation comparisons mainly because you get to experience cultural exchange if you are fortunate enough to understand or have access to a translator (*cough* @connoisseursdecomfort *cough*) who enjoys comparing multiple languages. Thank you for doing God's work @connoisseursdecomfort <3

[allthingslinguistic]

I agree about the opt-out button, and I also think that the boop-o-meter providing counts of boops sent/received also contributes to this. Like, you know that anyone who's enabled boops is most likely excited about seeing Number Go Up so you booping them is doing them a tiny favour and you don't have to second-guess the meta-message you're sending by booping someone because you know that they know you're also trying to make your Number Go Up.

Personally, I started off only booping my mutuals (booping the moots), but then a) I realized very quickly that it would be hard to get any badges that way and b) a lot of people were reblogging things about how they were booping everyone who crossed their dash so I started just booping and booping back people indiscriminately.

(Though I will say, as a fairly large blog that's been around for a while, my experience may not have been entirely typical as I did get all the way to BLR received yesterday so apologies if I wasn't able to boop you back. But even then it was still a well-designed experience and my activity feed didn't feel entirely overwhelmed with boops, it was just glorious chaos. I think the boop-o-meter converting to words/kaomoji after a bit also made it feel less competitive after a while.)

kind of interesting how the boop feature makes tumblr feel so much more active? like idk usually you see people reblogging stuff but you never know if that's a queue and you forget that there are real people behind the blogs. but if ur getting booped? somebody saw you and acknowledged your existence. wild.

[cheshmeanahita]

Social language-the varieties of language used for different purposes. The use of different varieties of language to enact and recognize different identities in different settings.

Discourses-ways of combining and integrating language actions and interactions, ways of thinking, believing , valuing, and using various symbols, tools and objects to enact a particular sort of socially recognizable identity.

Intertextuality-when one spoken or written text alludes to quotes or otherwise relates to another.

Conversation-all the talk and writing that has gone on in a specific social group or in society at large around a major theme, debate, or motif.

If it communicates a who and a what then an oral or written “utterance” has meaning .

Who=a socially-situated identity kind of person one is seeking to be and enact here and now. (can be multiple and they need not always be people)

What=is a socially situated practice or activity that the utterance helps to constitute or carry out.

You are who you are partly through what you are doing and what you are doing is partly recognized for what it by who is doing it..

To be a particular who and to pull off a particular what requires that we act value, interaction, and use language in sync with or in coordination with other people and with various object(props) in appropriate locations and at appropriate times.

[alewaanewspaper1960]

خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة في سياق صفقة القرن

خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة في سياق صفقة القرن   خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة في سياق صفقة القرن الكاتب : أبو حمَّاد إبراهيم الملخَّص: تناقش هذه الدراسة الموسومة ب ” خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة تجاه الحقوق الفلسطينية في سياق صفقة القرن” في مبحثين: تناول المبحث الأول خطاب السياسة الخارجية الأمريكية تجاه الثوابت الفلسطينية في سياق صفقة القرن، ويفحص المبحث الثاني خطاب التفا��لات…

[dr-amer]

خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة في سياق صفقة القرن

خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة في سياق صفقة القرن   خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة في سياق صفقة القرن الكاتب : أبو حمَّاد إبراهيم الملخَّص: تناقش هذه الدراسة الموسومة ب ” خطاب السّياسة الخارجيّة الأمريكيّة تجاه الحقوق الفلسطينية في سياق صفقة القرن” في مبحثين: تناول المبحث الأول خطاب السياسة الخارجية الأمريكية تجاه الثوابت الفلسطينية في سياق صفقة القرن، ويفحص المبحث الثاني خطاب التفاعلات…

[takethyfairhour2021]