1. UNIVERSIDAD SANTO TOMÁS
VICERRECTORIA DE UNIVERSIDAD ABIERTA Y A DISTANCIA
FACULTAD DE EDUCACION
LICENCIATURA EN LENGUA EXTRANJERA INGLÉS
DISCOURSE ANALYSIS (DA)
Prepared by Edgar Lucero
APPROACHES TO DA
Towards an analysis of discourse
Post-structuralist Discourse (PDA) and Post-feminist Discourse Analysis (PFDA)
PDA PFDA
Firstly, it is pertinent to distinguish PDA from In this type of analysis of discourse, there are
CA and CDA. Remember that CA focuses two bases: a vision of feminism, and a vision
primarily on the patterns of communication in of post-structuralism, both connected
language in use to unveil the social acts that conceptually and pragmatically up against
those patterns enact, while CDA studies the other visions of discourse analysis. Thus,
social phenomena in terms of the ritual and PFDA has a different facet from liberal
institutional practices by revealing structures discourse, essentialist discourse, and social-
of power and unmaking ideologies. PDA then radical discourse. In other words, PFDA is the
describes and illuminates, by analyzing and counter discourse of the discourse of elites
interpreting discourse, how participants of a established in CDA. Its main goal is to
discursive event are positioned as powerful or analyze the discourse in the need to resist and
powerless by competing in the social or subvert the structures of power from three
institutional discourse. In other words, PDA principles: 1) the functional belief in a
seeks for unveiling how an individual is universal cause, 2) the notion that the personal
positioned or reposition as powerful by the is political, and 3) the search for a common
other(s) in certain moments and as powerless, voice expressing a cause.
by the others as well, in other moments
throughout a discursive event. The analysis 1) A universal cause: the analysis of discourse
then focuses on how individuals in a following this principle seeks for signifying a
discursive event negotiate and shape their liberatory knowledge which means making
subject positions by multiple subjectivities people aware of their subjugation by
through and within discourse. PDA is outlined consciousness raising and equipping freedom
by three principles: from all forms of oppression. The objective is
then, from analysis of discourse, to make
1) Scepticism towards universal causes: it people be part of consciousness towards
refers to the “will to truth” is also a “will to human equality, authenticity, self-
power.” In other terms, the superior improvement, democracy, freedom, and social
knowledge of an individual about the world (a progress.
regime of knowledge) enables him/her to hold
power over (an) other people (person) and 2) The personal is political: this principle
their inferior knowledge. However, the centers on people (mostly female) experiences
analysis under this principle challenges the to gain self-knowledge and give expression to
positive view of a unique type of knowledge, people (mostly female) subjectivity.
since in discourse there can be multiple and Therefore, as people gain more knowledge of
competing knowledgeable positions in which themselves and their position in a determined
one piece of knowledge enriches, context, their power to transform social
complements, challenges, and contests any relations in that context should increase
other knowledge. accordingly. This has been more evident in
the feminist discourse about the differences
2) The contestation of meaning: this principle between men and women which have

2. clarifies that there is not a fixed meaning in constructed varied forms of female
the competing forms of knowledge since the consciousness and identity. The main
social/cultural practices are constituted by the objective of discourse analysis under this
struggle to produce, stabilize, regulate, principle is to construct a protest against how
challenge, and resist superior meanings. trivial, irrelevant, sensitive, and threatening a
Therefore, meanings are continuously marginalized group is been seen by the power.
negotiated and contested through language
and discourse. It happens because there is not 3) A common voice: the results of the analysis
a meaning by itself, but by its relation with of discourse under this principle seeks for
and difference from other meanings. unifying a group to confront power structures
of oppression by making evident its voices,
3) The discursive construction of subjectivity: arguments, and demands for change with a
this principle establishes that in the common voice. This protest is constructed to
construction of discourse, human identities are penetrate power but to compete with it. The
constructed. Therefore, the formation and protest is to make power realize what it is to
reformation of identities is a continuous be a subjugated.
process, accomplished through actions and
words and not through some fundamental
essence of character. It happens because
individuals are always inside cultural and
social forces with discursive practices, thus,
their identities are determined by them. It
means that individuals can have different
subject positions in different discursive
contexts. In sum, different subject positions in
a context create identities that are then
revealed through different subjectivities.
Comparative table
Approach Objective Concepts
CA To reveal interactional patterns in communication Interactional patters, social
in context to unveil social acts. acts. (Neutral view of
subjectivities)
CDA To reveal the discourse of power over submission. Position, identities.
PDA To reveal how an individual is positioned as Position, subjectivities,
powerful or powerless by the others through and identities, voices.
within discourse (multiple subjectivities).
PFDA To reveal the discourse of submission to confront Sex, gender, identities,
power. position, voices.

3. Examples for PDA and PFDA
[Whole class discussion] In this extract from a real discursive event,
T: Anne? Anne and Rebecca struggle to complete
ANNE: If you don’t go to habitat, their participations or develop a point of
you can’t survive with just the water view with girls’ support. It happens
and overcoat because… [Joe because they experience a series of
interrupts] interruptions and distractions from some
JOE: but you can still go there! boys. When Anne has just got her point,
REBECCA: Yes she is interrupted by Joe challenging her.
ANNE: not if you don’t have a Rebecca signals Joe’s point while he
compass succeeds to make it clear. Though Anne
JOE: yes… but if you travel in the agrees too, she is unable to finish her point
day [Some boys reinforce Joe by just until Joe has presented his and now
speaking loudly, the girls have their has to follow the conversation from Joe’s
hands up] point. Again, Joe challenges and defeats
T: Rebecca her when he receives boys’ support to his
REBECCA: but you can’t be in one point. During this, girls keep their hands
place [Boys hubbed Rebecca] up. Teacher supports the girls’ conformity
T: Hands up, please and nominates Rebecca. She then tries to
REBECCA: you need to move and state her point although boys’ lack of
without a compass you can support. Damian interrupts and challenges
lost…[Damian interrupts] her. Situation that is accepted by the
T: Damian teacher when nominating him. Damian’s
PDA
DAMIAN: yes yes but you can wait point is supported by boys’ speaking but
for rescue there [Boys reinforces partially challenged by girls’ laughs only.
Damian by speaking aloud but girls
laughed at him] Conclusions:
- Boys are assigned more power in this
class by the teacher, other boys, and the
submissive role of girls.
- Girls are powerless in the right of
expressing their points.
- Boys are assigned by the teacher and the
girls’ acceptance of more knowledge.
- Girls fail in competing knowledge to the
boys’ since girls’ knowledge is usually
challenged more drastically.
- Though boy’s points are more accepted,
theirs is not fixed since they are partially
challenge by the girls’.
- Identities: Teacher as mediator and giver
of power. Boys as knowledgeable,
defeaters, challengers, powerful. Girls as
accepters, pointers, and powerless.
Subjectivities:
Voices:

4. [Teacher working with flashcards for In this extract the teacher shows a
professions and occupations] flashcard of a female bus driver. S1, who
T: who is she? [showing a female bus is a girl, answers based on the picture of
driver] the flashcard. It denotes affinity to the
S1: she? Bus driver! picture. However, S2, who is a boy,
S2: pero no, es un hombre! disagrees with this picture and answers by
S1: pero una mujer también, mira el inferring that bus driving is a male
dibujo. profession. The girl immediately restates
S2: esta mal! her perspective affirming that it is not a
profession exclusively for men. The boy
does not agree either, by affirming now
that the mistake is in the picture as well.
Conclusions
- The girl takes a stand against male
position of dominance in the action of bus
driving as an exclusive profession for
males.
PFDA
- The girl, though doubting at the
beginning, liberates women by standing
that they can also perform that profession
of bus driving as perfectly well as men.
- The girl makes clear to the boy that it is
completely suitable for a woman to drive a
bus, and she makes it clear by the
affirmation that the picture in the flashcard
displays.
- The girl’s defiant sentence makes clear
her position of protest against boy’s
comment.
- Though the girl defies the boy, she is not
stating that that profession cannot be done
by a man, as the boy does, but also by a
woman.
Identities:
Voices:
Gender acts:
References
Baxter, J. (2002). Competing discourses in the classroom: a post-structuralist discourse
analysis of girls’ and boys’ speech in public contexts, in Discourse and Society 13 (6):
827-842.
Baxter, J. (2003). Positioning Gender in Discourse: A Feminist methodology.
Basingstoke: Palgrave McMillan.
Castañeda-Peña, H. (2008). Interwoven and competing gendered discourses in a Pre-
school EFL lesson, in Harrington, K. et al (eds.). Gender and Language Research
Methodologies. Basingstoke: Palgrave McMillan, pp. 256-268.
Creese, A. (2005). Teacher Collaboration and Talk in Multilingual classrooms.
Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.