Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis (Introducing Qualitative Methods series) [Abridged] [Paperback]

Ruth Wodak (Editor), Michael Meyer (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0761961542 | ISBN-13: 978-0761961543 | Publication Date: March 29, 2002 | Edition: First Edition

This book is designed as an introduction to Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and gives an overview of the various theories and methods associated with this sociolinguistic approach. It also introduces the reader to the leading figures in CDA and the methods to which they are most closely related. The text aims to provide a comprehensive description of the individual methods, an understanding of the theories to which methods refer and a comparative treatment of each of these methods so that students may be able to determine which is the most appropriate to select for their particular research question. Given the balance between theory and application, plus the intended audience - no previous knowledge of CDA is assumed - Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis should be useful reading for both students and researchers in the fields of linguistics, sociology, social psychology and the social sciences in general.

 

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ruth Wodak is Chair of Discourse studies at the Department of Linguistics and English Language, Lancaster University. She is Director of the research centre ‘Discourse, Politics and Identity’ at the Department of Linguistics, University of Vienna. Ruth is co-editor of SAGE’s Discourse and Society, editor of Critical Discourse Studies and also editor of the journal of Language and Politics. She edits the book series Discourse Approaches to Politics, Society and Culture (DAPSAC).

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd; First Edition edition (March 29, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0761961542
• ISBN-13: 978-0761961543
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,559,161 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great and accessible overview, September 16, 2002

By 

Henri Edward Dongieux - See all my reviews

This review is from: Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis (Introducing Qualitative Methods series) (Paperback)

As a beginning student of CDA, I was pleased to read this volume, which almost serves as a personal valet welcoming one into this growing area of Linguistics. In a short and very readable book, we get the latest theories and methods in concise language that covers a lot of ground quickly. If you have read Titscher, Meyer, Wodak, and Vetter's "Methods of Text and Discourse Analysis" (Sage, 2000), you'll be relieved to see that this book is more focused and, for the most part, less technical. That's not to say that it's any less powerful, because the flip-side is that with this volume's emphasis only on CDA, we are reminded again and again of the ethical and emancipatory imperative of the CDA researcher.

Wodak herself introduces CDA's geneaology up to the present. Meyer then provides a concise discussion of methods, winding up his chapter with the admonition that CDA is not yet a unified discipline, but is nonetheless a constellation of approaches and methods that are likely approaching something resembling more of a singularity that at present - if more research is done in the field. Siegfried Jager's chapter on Discourse and Knowledge is a nice surprise from a lesser-known German analyst, who fortifies and corrects some of Foucault's conceptualizations about discourses and dispositifs and provides a trialectical model for looking at action, discourse, and manifestation. We then get a sound overview of Wodak's Historical CDA method and van Dijk's more social-cognitive method, followed by an overview of Fairclough's sociologically-oriented theory and Ron Scollon's micro-social critical discourse analysis.

The book is honest about CDA's "growth areas" and the criticisms it has received, and calls rather commonsensically for more research in order to shore up some of its weaknesses or areas that have not yet been fully explored. For the beginning researcher in CDA who is unsure about how to design his or her research proposal, this book provides solace via its characterization of CDA as hermeneutic rather than positivistic. In other words, there is always room for improvement.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book and very useful to those engaged in critical discourse analysis, February 13, 2006

By 

Adriana E. Podestá (Argentina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis (Introducing Qualitative Methods series) (Paperback)

The book provides a very clear view of all the directions in Critical Discourse Analysis, according to the different scholars.However, they all have in common, their concern with social inequalities and their aim to create awareness of injustice and abuse of power.
Text analysis serves the purpose of showing the relationship between language and power.
I highly recommend this book to those readers who are doing research into discourse analysis like myself.

5.0 out of 5 stars A necessary addition to my library, May 13, 2007

By 

J. McKendrick - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis (Introducing Qualitative Methods series) (Paperback)

As a good introduction to the field of critical discourse analysis, and its various aims, philosophies, and methods, this book is to be highly recommended. I particularly appreciated the examples - detailed and interesting, they are a tremendous aid in learning to use the methods covered.