Course Description
An interdisciplinary study of language use, text analysis, and evaluation. The course will provide students with the ability to investigate and evaluate structural features of language and to identify the strategies used by different writers based on style and cultural backgrounds.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
In general, expectations for graduate students are higher, with
more stringent standards for grading. Additional requirements
for graduate students will include some combination of the
following: (1) additional required reading, including original
scholarly research; (2) longer and more complex written
assignments, which demonstrate a deeper and more sophisticated
understanding of concepts and theoretical issues introduced in
the course; (3) in-class presentations; (4) a final research
paper, which should include a literature review and conform to
professional standards in the discipline in terms of
organization, formatting, argumentation, and citations. If
undergraduates are also assigned a final research paper, theirs
will be shorter and will not require a thorough literature
review.
Athena Title
Discourse Analysis
Prerequisite
LING 3060 or LING 3150 or LING 3150W or LING 3250
Semester Course Offered
Offered every year.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
At the end of the course, students, having read a wide range of material related to discourse analysis, will be able to discuss the principles of discourse organi- zation and text analysis, understand the basic processes of producing and interpre- ting texts, and recognize and evaluate strategies used by speakers and respondents in communication. They will have acquired some knowledge of the essential relation- ships between language and its various contexts.
Topical Outline
The choice and sequence of topics will vary from instructor to instructor and from semester to semester. The topics will consist of a series of readings in the theories, methods, and applications of discourse analysis, including such matters as definitions of discourse, narrative discourse, language and literature, frame analysis, coherence, and discourse patternings. Periodically during the semester, students will perform a number of graded tasks, including classroom presentations, quizzes and tests, individual and/or group projects, and term papers.
Syllabus