‘Those people who chose us’: Discursive construction of identity and belonging in the context of Quebec’s 2018 provincial elections

2020 ◽  
pp. 095792652097038
Author(s):  
Yulia Bosworth
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
French Language ◽  
Party Leader ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
French Canadian ◽  
Party Leaders ◽  
Construction Of Identity ◽  
Close Textual Analysis ◽  
Run Up

In the climate of the growing diversification of the ethnocultural landscape, Quebecers of French-Canadian background, often viewed as mistrustful of ethnic minorities, have been faced with the challenge of renegotiating the symbolic boundaries of what it means to be a Quebecer. This study investigates discursive construction of identity and belonging in a multi-text body of discourse generated in the context of the French-language party leader debates in the run-up to Quebec’s 2018 provincial elections, which brought to power the center-right Coalition Avenir Québec. A close textual analysis of discourse produced by the party leaders and by debate viewers commenting on the Facebook page of Radio-Canada during the debates’ live stream, following the research program of Critical Discourse Analysis, demonstrates an enduring ethnic bias in the conceptualization of Quebec identity by the dominant ingroup – Francophone Quebecers of French-Canadian origin – one that puts in jeopardy the inclusive, civic Quebec identity promoted in official discourse of the Quebec government.

“Les gens qui vous ressemblent”: Discursive Negotiation of Identity and Construction of Affiliation in the 2019 Canadian Federal Election Party Leader Debates

2021 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-32
Author(s):  
Yulia Bosworth
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Shared Vision ◽  
French Language ◽  
Party Leader ◽  
French Canadian ◽  
Federal Election ◽  
Party Leaders ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Negotiation Of Identity ◽  
Crucial Part

In the weeks leading up to the Canadian federal election, federal party leaders seek to appeal to a crucial part of the electorate - Québec voters, most of whom are of French-Canadian background - through a series of televised debates. As party leaders engage in discourse aimed at creating proximity with and enacting an affiliative stance toward these voters, the debates become a platform for discursive negotiation of Québec identity, in which identity stances and narratives are reflected, reproduced, and challenged. This study examines a corpus of party leaders’ discourse as these political actors interactively negotiate Québec identity during three party leader debates in the 2019 federal election. Following the theoretical framework of Critical Discourse Analysis, the inquiry discusses the following aspects of the party leaders’ discourse: discursive representation of Quebecers’ group identity and self-positioning with respect to that identity, use of symbolic lexis and references that signal attachment to the French-Canadian majority’s collective memory, and self-positioning with respect to the French language. In addition, the discussion addresses implications of the bilingual nature of political discourse in the Canadian context, focusing on party leaders’ use of code-switching and metapragmatic commentary. Crucially, the study’s conclusions suggest that a shared vision of Québec identity has not yet been widely ratified. While the party leaders’ discourse appears largely felicitous with the inclusive, civic vision of Québec identity, the study’s findings point to continued primacy of the French-Canadian fact in its current conceptualization.

Discursive construction of an anti-immigration Europe by a Sweden Democrat in the European Parliament

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 429-439
Author(s):  
Kamber Güler
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Social Power ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Cognitive Approach ◽  
The Public ◽  
Political Group

Discourses are mostly used by the elites as a means of controlling public discourse and hence, the public mind. In this way, they try to legitimate their ideology, values and norms in the society, which may result in social power abuse, dominance or inequality. The role of a critical discourse analyst is to understand and expose such abuses and inequalities. To this end, this paper is aimed at understanding and exposing the discursive construction of an anti-immigration Europe by the elites in the European Parliament (EP), through the example of Kristina Winberg, a member of the Sweden Democrats political party in Sweden and the political group of Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy in the EP. In the theoretical and methodological framework, the premises and strategies of van Dijk’s socio-cognitive approach of critical discourse analysis make it possible to achieve the aim of the paper.

Eulogies for the Resistance

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 272-292
Author(s):  
Jack Joy
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Political Action ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
State Of Exception ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Scholarly Work ◽  
Affective States ◽  
Mimetic Desire ◽  
Syrian Civil War ◽  
Moral Universe

Recent studies into the notion of crisis argue that affective states of insecurity can offer an instrumental utility to elites seeking to sustain existing power relations. Through their discursive construction, such imaginative landscapes help legitimize previously illegitimate forms of political action, rationalize heightened forms of collective sacrifice and instill new disciplinary technologies among political subjects. Building on this growing body of scholarly work, in this study I use critical discourse analysis (CDA) to address Hizbullah’s mobilization of a specific ‘crisis imaginary’ as part of its efforts to legitimize its ongoing involvement in the Syrian civil war. This perceptual regime works to uphold a ‘state of exception’ for Hizbullah, sustain the practice of martyrdom as a form of Girardian ‘mimetic desire’ and structure a wider moral universe that continues to bind the party’s audience to the resistance society while maintaining their continued docility.

The Legitimating Power of Discourse

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 256-275
Author(s):  
Mustafa Menshawy
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
The State ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
The Political ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Linguistic Features ◽  
Media Texts ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Culturally Embedded

Abstract In this article, I examine a corpus of texts that address the 1973 war; these texts cover the period from 1981 to 2011, marking the beginning and end of Hosni Mubarak’s rule. Utilizing Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), I explore how Mubarak’s regime employed the war to legitimize its power and defend its policies by deploying longstanding culturally-embedded ‘macro themes’. These macro themes refer to the war as an overwhelming and undisputed ‘Egyptian victory’ and, more significantly, they portray Mubarak himself as ‘war personified/war personalized’. The analysis of linguistic and extra-linguistic features in al-Ahram newspaper (the mouthpiece of the state), among other media texts on the war, show how the discursive construction was made consistent, coherent and resonant in a managed context that characterized the political and media landscapes. Depending on unique access to those who produced, edited and even censored the texts under analysis, this method unravels a complex set of cultural messages and conventions about the war, and fills a lacuna in the literature by offering insight into the deliberate and well-coordinated process of shaping and reshaping a specific discourse for a specific purpose.

scholarly journals La construcción discursiva de la identidad andaluza y la reproducción de la memoria colectiva en la serie La respuesta está en la historia / The Discursive Construction of Andalusian Identity and Collective Memory Play in the Series the Answer Lies in History

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kamil Fleissner
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Social Construction ◽  
Collective Memory ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Collective Identity ◽  
Theoretical Approach ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Television Series ◽  
The Social

ABSTRACTThis study aims to analyze the discoursive representation of andalusian collective identity and memory in the television series “La respuesta está en la historia”. I will reflect the theoretical approach of the social construction of identities and I will use the methodology of the critical discourse analysis to identify, classify and explore the basic discoursive strategies that are reproduced by the television series.RESUMENEl propósito general de este estudio es analizar la construcción discursiva de las representaciones de la identidad social y de la memoria colectiva de los andaluces en la serie “La respuesta está en la Historia”. Reflejando las explicaciones teóricas de la construcción de la identidad y los conceptos de la memoria colectiva, y usando la perspectiva teórico-metodológica del análisis crítico del discurso identifico, clasifico y exploro las principales estrategias discursivas usadas en el programa.

scholarly journals Media construction of the immigrant’s image: specifics of discourse strategies (based on the content of a Facebook group and articles in The Daily Mail)

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 23-44
Author(s):  
M. S. Matytsina ◽  
O. N. Prokhorova ◽  
I. V. Chekulai
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Media Discourse ◽  
Daily Mail ◽  
Reciprocal Effect ◽  
The Media ◽  
Definition Of

The paper based on the content of the Facebook group Immigrants in EU and The Daily Mail publications discusses the issue of discursive construction of an immigrant image in media discourse. Using the framework of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), the authors claim that the image of an immigrant can be viewed as a discursive construct, and the main discursive strategies involved in its construction include the reference strategy and the prediction strategy. As a result of the analysis, the so called CDA-categories (topic blocks) underlying the formation of the immigrant figure, are identified and illustrated by the relevant examples, the need for further study of the social media discourse as part of critical discourse analysis is justified. The relevance of such study is due to the growing research interest in discursive construction of the immigrant figure in the media discourse, since it underpins the definition of discourse as a form of social practice, not only reflecting processes in the society, but also exerting a reciprocal effect on them. The use of both verbal and non-verbal means in the media texts under study reflects the intention of the authors of the messages to use all possible communication channels when constructing an immigrant’s image. The results show that the dichotomy of “friends and foes” is being formed and maintained by the British newspaper The Daily Mail, while the members of the Immigrants in EU group try to mitigate the conflict between immigrants and indigenous people.

scholarly journals The Discursive Construction of Gender as Social Identity in Arabic written Discourse

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 168
Author(s):  
Shifaa Hadi Hussein
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Social Identity ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Written Discourse

Identity is the idiosyncratic features that characterize an individual as being unique. It is the dynamic per formativeness of self through behaviors, acts, clothes and etc.. When such self is shared (by sharing memories, desires, and emotions) with others, it becomes social identity. Such an identity is, thus, changed, transformed, spoke out, acknowledged and never be fixed at any moment of life. The current study aims at studying the discursive construction of social identity in Arabic written discourse. It seeks to ponder the question of what linguistic devices do the Arab writers utilize to identify themselves in discourse and to show sameness and differences between in – and out- groups. To attain the above aim, we hypothesize that Arab writers use scanted discursive and linguistic devices to identify gender in their writing. Accordingly, seven linguistic and discursive components have been chosen to analyze the discourse to unveil the identity of its writer: processes, mood, modality, vocabulary and collocation, pronouns, figurative uses of language, and interdiscursivity. The study comes with some conclusions, the most important of which are: social identity can be traced in Arabic discourse through the construction of in _ and out_ groups with the in- group being victimized by the out-group who is the dominant, a conclusion which clashes with studies of critical discourse analysis, and changes and transformation of identity occur through stages including: attention, interest, solutions and urging by giving commands.

scholarly journals Politicotainment: Fictionalizing Politics in Pakistani Cinema

2017 ◽  
Vol II (I) ◽  
pp. 273-288
Author(s):  
Haleema Khalid ◽  
Muhammad Shahbaz ◽  
Behzad Anwar
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Political System ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Media Discourse ◽  
Political Issues ◽  
National Crisis ◽  
Language Discourse ◽  
Discourse Historical Approach

This article aims to investigate Maalik, Pakistani political thriller as the product of ‘politicotainment’, a genre combining politics and entertainment. Keeping in view the nexus of politics, media and language, Discourse Historical Approach from the perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis with a particular focus on media, discourse, and society is employed. Maalik, is exceptional movie because it is explicitly related to real life socio-political and socio-cultural events of Pakistan; its focus on social and political issues such as exploitation of power and corrupt political system shifts the focus towards the ownership of Pakistan and accepting responsibilities. Therefore, the film connects the emerging political discourse in Pakistan with the rising public pulse against corruption and call for accountability. This research provides insights regarding the discursive construction of contemporary Pakistani narrative in the time of national crisis in order to reveal the projected and recontextualized norms in the context of Pakistan.

scholarly journals A Critical Discourse Analysis of Donald Trump’s Inaugural Address in 2017

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-31
Author(s):  
Ameer Ali ◽  
Mohammad Ibrahim Mohammad Ibrahim
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Research Work ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Inaugural Address ◽  
Collection Method ◽  
American Values ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Historical Model

The current research work is a critical discourse analysis of Donald Trump's Inaugural Address (2017). The researcher has made use of Ruth Wodak’s Discourse Historical Model (2004) to study the inaugural address. Moreover, the current research work is qualitative in its approach and analysis, as it answers the research questions in accordance with Ruth Wodak’s Discourse Historical Model (2004). Furthermore, research design used in this research is both descriptive and explanatory; and, it also contains purposive sampling as a data collection method. Although much CDA research has been already carried out on Trump’s speeches, the current research studies Trump’s speech in the context of history and power using Ruth Wodak’s Discourse Historical Model (2004). The researcher has focused lexical and syntactic items in Trump’s speech. Besides, the researcher has found out that power relations, historical norms, ideological constraints, and American values have played a significant role in the discursive construction of Trump’s Inaugural address (2017). Finally, the current research convincingly achieves its objectives and answers its questions.  

scholarly journals THE DISCURSIVE CONSTRUCTION OF INDIGENOUS BELIEF ISSUE IN THE JAKARTA POST

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 417-430
Author(s):  
Suprayogi Suprayogi ◽  
Dian Puspita ◽  
Sandi Nuansa ◽  
Kamelia Sari
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Social Actor ◽  
Human Right ◽  
Online Newspaper ◽  
Language Data ◽  
Identity Card ◽  
Proper Name ◽  
Discourse Historical Approach

As indigenous belief acknowledgement in Indonesia is still progressive, debatable but limitedly investigated from critical discourse analysis perspective, this research is aimed at revealing the discursive construction of indigenous belief issue in The Jakarta Post. This research focuses on analyzing indigenous belief as phenomenon, indigenous believers and government as social actor through the analysis of nomination and predication strategies. Articles published in The Jakarta Post online newspaper from 2013 - 2020 are chosen as corpus data. To analyze this research, Discourse-Historical Approach by Wodak and Meyer (2009) is used as the framework. This research also employs corpus analysis using Sketch Engine. The finding suggests that the issue centralized in the discussion of identity card and human right framed in five different periods. The use of collective proper name, anthroponym and deixis are significant to refer to indigenous believers, meanwhile institutional name, anthroponym and synecdoche are mostly used as referent for government. There is a shift of predication strategies from negative to positive when it discussed government policy on putting indigenous belief column on identity card. This research suggests that the use of corpus software as well as manual corpus screening is important to locate more detail language data. 

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