Models of Discourse Analysis (Advanced Methods in Discourse Studies): 731-B

Tayyab Zaidi tayyabz@umich.edu | Wednesdays: 10:30 AM-1 PM

text (n.)
late 14c., "the wording of anything wri6en," from Old French texte, Old North French $xte "text, book;
Gospels" (12c.), from Medieval LaHn textus "the Scriptures; a text, a treaHse," earlier, in Late LaHn "wri6en
account, content, characters used in a document," from LaHn textus "style or texture of a work," etymologically
"thing woven," from past-parHciple stem of " (from PIE root *teks- "to weave, to fabricate, to make; make
wicker or wa6le framework").
Also in English from late 14c. more specifically as "an authoritaHve wriHng or document; a translated discourse
or composiHon (as opposed to the commentary on it); story, tale, narraHve; ChrisHan doctrine; a passage of the
Bible (as a proof or a subject of discourse); the le6er of the Scriptures," especially in the original language.
Hence, generally, "a subject, theme" (c. 1600), figuraHvely, from the noHon of "where one starts." The meaning
"a digital text message" is by 2005.

An ancient metaphor: thought is a thread, and the raconteur is a spinner of yarns — but the true storyteller, the
poet, is a weaver. The scribes made this old and audible abstrac$on into a new and visible fact. A?er long
prac$ce, their work took on such an even, flexible texture that they called the wriBen page a textus, which
means cloth. [Robert Bringhurst, "The Elements of Typographic Style"]

< h6ps://www.etymonline.com/word/text#etymonline_v_10699>

discourse (n.)
late 14c., "process of understanding, reasoning, thought," from French discours, from LaHn discursus "a
running about," in Late LaHn "conversaHon," in Medieval LaHn "reasoning," noun use of past parHciple
of discurrere "to run about, run to and fro, hasten," in Late LaHn "to go over a subject, speak at length of,
discourse of," from dis- "apart" (see dis-) + currere "to run" (from PIE root *kers- "to run"). Meaning "a running
over a subject in speech, communicaHon of thought in words" is from 1550s; sense of "discussion or treatment
of a subject in formal speech or wriHng," is from 1580s.

h6ps://www.etymonline.com/word/discourse#etymonline_v_11403

Overview
Models of Discourse Analysis, retitled (starting 2025) ‘Advanced Discourse Studies’ looks to move to
the deeper end of discourse studies pool, building on the similarly titled MA/BS module which is a
primer on (some of the) key traditions in the field. The MPhil course zooms in on two of these
traditions, viz., Conversation Analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis. While the course is
theoretically rich, it offers hands-on engagements with real-life language, from multiple discourse
perspectives.

Course plan
Weeks 1-3
The course sets off with some preliminary topics: conceptual boundaries of ‘text’ and discourse’;
overview of major discourse traditions; and, similarities and differences between spoken and written
language). The initial weeks also whet the appetite for data and we get to play with transcribing and
examining texts from a variety of genres of communication.
Additionally, you will be asked to do one or two reflective exercises (e.g. an intellectual
autobiography, ‘self-authoring’ etc) to help you track the trajectory of your intellectual interests.

Weeks 4-5
In the fourth and the fifth weeks, we will make ourselves at home in Conversation Analysis (CA) and
Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), guided by a couple of theoretical and methodological pieces. You
will also get started with reading the methodology section of a PhD dissertation that uses CA or CDA.
Plus, we will do plenty of practice annotating conversations using Jefferson’s CA conventions.

Weeks 6-8
Over these weeks, we will take a plunge into CA, spotlighting a number of theoretical concerns and
methodological strategies, aided by some canonical as well as cutting-edge studies in Conversation
Analysis. Topics may include preference structure, openings and closings, adjacency pairs and turn-
taking mechanisms.

Weeks 8-11
These weeks will be dedicated to the exploration of Critical Discourse Analysis as a paradigm of
discourse analysis. The readings this week will highlight how language participates in the
construction of ideology, social inequality, relations of power or/and social change. These pieces will
also highlight the permeation of CDA critiques in a range of social fields including education, mass
culture, public policy and advertising.

Weeks 12 onwards
Should we get to week 12 and beyond, we will work on the Term Project.

Assessment components
• Portfolio and class participation (25 marks): All tasks and assignments must be uploaded on
Google Classroom. These include questions on texts, data transcription and annotation as well
as short discourse analysis tasks. Active class participation is required. Marks may be
deducted if you fail to present on a day assigned for your presentation. This includes shared
in-class discussion tasks.
• Dissertation summary (25 marks): Be prepared to present a methodology-focused dissertation
summary in writing as well in the form of a presentation over weeks 8 to 11. Each one of you
will be assigned a different PhD work, based either on CA or on CDA. Report on the research
topic, research questions, methodology and findings.
• Presentations (on topics/research papers) (20 marks): You will be assigned at least two
research articles or book chapters that draw on CA and CDA. You may have to present a
critical synopsis or/and discuss the methodology used in the class.
• Term Project (30): This will be a 4000-word original small-scale research project, drawing
either on CA or CDA.

Housekeeping
1. Attendance—your regularity as well as punctuality—are vital to the success of this course,
even as your presence and participation may shape your performance and grades. Should you
face an unavoidable circumstance that prevents you from coming to the class, inform me in
advance over WhatsApp. Also, see to it that you collect notes from other students, as soon as
you can, when you are absent and that you show up in the next class with completed
assignments.
2. Please acquaint yourself with the BASR policies, including performance criteria (GPA) and
the timeframe within which you have to fulfil all semester requirements.
3. Remember to upload your assignments on Google Classroom by the deadline. Late
submissions may hurt your overall course grade.
4. If you require accommodations due to illness or other emergencies, let me know as soon as
possible. In case of absence, make-up tasks may be assigned.

Resources (required or/and suggested)

Dissertations
Chelf, C. A. (2018). A critical discourse analysis of higher education leaders as portrayed in the
Chronicle of Higher Education. [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Lamourex, E.L. (1985). An analysis of conversation in service encounters. [Unpublished doctoral
dissertation].University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon.
Szmania, S.J. (2004). Beginning difficult conversations: An analysis of opening statements in victim
offender mediation/dialogue. [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. University of Texas, Austin, Texas.

Books
Blommaert, J. (2005). Discourse: A critical introduction. Cambridge University Press.
Brown, G., & Yule, G. (1983). Discourse analysis. Cambridge University Press.
Canning, P., & Walker, B. (2024). Discourse analysis. Routledge.
Chapelle, C. A. (Ed.). (2013). The encyclopedia of applied linguistics (1–10). Wiley-Blackwell.
Clift, R. (2016). Conversation analysis. Cambridge University Press.
Coffin, C., Lillis, T., & O’Halloran, K. (Eds.). (2009b). Applied linguistics methods: A reader.
Routledge.
Cook, G. (1989). Discourse. Oxford University Press.
Drew, P., & Heritage, J. (Eds.). (2006). Conversation analysis. SAGE Publications.
Fairclough, N. (2003b). Analysing discourse: Textual analysis for social research. Routledge.
Fairclough, N. (2006). Language & globalization. Routledge.
Fairclough, N. (2010a). Critical discourse analysis: The critical study of language. Routledge.
Fairclough, N. (2014). Language and power. Routledge.
Flowerdew, J., & Richardson, J. E. (Eds.). (2017). The Routledge handbook of critical discourse
studies. Routledge.
Gee, J. P. (2014a). An Introduction to discourse analysis: Theory and method. Routledge.
Gee, J. P. (2014c). How to do discourse analysis: A toolkit. Routledge.
Gee, J. P. (2017). Introducing discourse analysis: From grammar to society. Routledge.
Gee, J. P., & Handford, M. (Eds.). (2013a). The Routledge handbook of discourse analysis. Routledge.
Howarth, D. (2001). Discourse. Open University Press.
Hutchby, I., & Wooffitt, R. (2008). Conversation analysis. Polity Press.
Jaworski, A., & Coupland, N. (Eds.). (2014a). The discourse reader. Routledge.
Johnstone, B. (2018). Discourse analysis. Wiley-Blackwell.
Jørgensen, M., & Phillips, L. (2002). Discourse analysis as theory and method. SAGE Publications.
Kaplan, R. B. (2010). The Oxford handbook of applied linguistics. Oxford University Press.
Liddicoat, A. J. (2021). An introduction to conversation analysis. Bloomsbury Academic.
Machin, D., & Mayr, A. (2012). How to do critical discourse analysis: A multimodal introduction.
SAGE Publications Ltd.
McCarthy, M., & Carter, R. (1994). Language as discourse: Perspectives for language teaching.
Longman.
Nunan, D. (1993). Introducing Discourse analysis. Penguin Books Ltd.
Paltridge, B. (2012). Discourse analysis: An introduction. Continuum.
Pennycook, A. (2021). Critical applied linguistics: A critical re-introduction. Routledge.
Psathas, G. (1995). Conversation analysis: The study of talk-in-interaction. SAGE Publications.
Rogers, R. (Ed.). (2011). An introduction to critical discourse analysis in education. Routledge.
Schegloff, E. A. (2007). Sequence organization in interaction: A primer in conversation analysis.
Cambridge University Press.
Schiffrin, D., Tannen, D., & Hamilton, H. E. (Eds.). (2003). The handbook of discourse analysis (New
Ed edition). Wiley-Blackwell.
Sidnell, J., & Stivers, T. (Eds.). (2013). The handbook of conversation analysis. Wiley-Blackwell.
Statham, S. (2022). Critical discourse analysis: A practical introduction to power in language.
Routledge.
Stivers, T., & Sidnell, J. (Eds.). (2014). The handbook of conversation analysis. Wiley-Blackwell.
Ten Have, P. (2007). Doing conversation analysis: A practical guide. SAGE Publications.
Wodak, R., & Meyer, M. (Eds.). (2015). Methods of critical discourse studies. SAGE Publications
Ltd.
Wooffitt, R. (2005). Conversation analysis and discourse analysis: A comparative and critical
introduction. SAGE Publications.

Articles
Billig, M. (2008). The language of critical discourse analysis: The case of nominalization. Discourse
& Society, 19(6), 783–800.
Blommaert, J., & Bulcaen, C. (2000). Critical discourse analysis. Annual Review of Anthropology,
29(1), 447–466.
Chepurnaya, A. (2023). Modeling public perception in times of crisis: discursive strategies in Trump’s
COVID-19 discourse. Critical Discourse Studies, 20(1), 70-87.
De Cillia, R., Reisigl, M., & Wodak, R. (1999). The discursive construction of national identities.
Discourse & Society, 10(2), 149–173.
Fairclough, N. (1992). Discourse and text: Linguistic and intertextual analysis within discourse
analysis. Discourse & Society, 3(2), 193–217.
Macgilchrist, F. (2017). Textbooks. In The Routledge handbook of critical discourse studies (pp. 525–
539). Routledge.
Rogers, R. (2004). Storied selves: A critical discourse analysis of adult learners’ literate lives. Reading
Research Quarterly, 39(3), 272–305.
Salam-Salmaoui, R., Salam, S. & Hassan, S. (2024). Motorcycles, minarets, and mullahs:
a multimodal critical discourse analysis on Pakistan’s journey to rebrand Islam. Semiotica, 2024(258),
115-142. https://doi.org/10.1515/sem-2023-0178
Samraj, B. (2008). A discourse analysis of master’s theses across disciplines with a focus on
introductions. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 7(1), 55–67.
van Dijk, T. (2004). From Text Grammar to Critical Discourse Analysis. A Brief Academic Biography.
Program of Discourse Studies. University of Amsterdam.
Xiong, T., & Yuan, Z. M. (2018). “It was because I could speak English that I got the job”: Neoliberal
discourse in a Chinese English textbook series. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 17(2),
103-117.

Research tools
The Zettelkasten method
Ahrens, S. (2022). How to take smart notes: One simple technique to boost writing, learning and
thinking. Createspace Independent Publishing Platform.
Notion < https://www.notion.so/>
The Archive < https://zettelkasten.de/the-archive/>

Obsidian < https://obsidian.md/>

Roam Research < https://roamresearch.com/>
Zotero < https://www.zotero.org/>

Good luck!