Discourse Analysis: Introduction

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1. Introduction: Discourse and Communication

Discourse is used for communication (Schiffrin 1994), which is to transmit messages from one part
of a living system to another (Sebeok 1991).

1.1 Composites of a sign

(1) a. A radiologist spots a silhouette on a chest X-ray photograph of a patient and diagnoses lung cancer.
b. A meteorologist notes a rise in barometric pressure and delivers the next day's forecast taking that
change into account.
c. A historian takes a look at the handwriting of a former president and hence gains insight into his
personality.
d. A man finds himself being stared at by a dog, growling, barking, head held high and neck arched,
lips contracted vertically and teeth bared, ears erect and turned forward. The man concludes he is
in danger of imminent attack and takes evasive action.
Fig. 1.1 The triadic relation between the Sign, the Object and the Interpretant (de Saussure)

Interpretant
Sign/signifier

Object/signified

(2) a. semiotics: study of signs, i.e. how signs function to transmit message (to communicate);
b. message: a string of signs transmitted from a source to a destination;
c. sign: consists of a signifier, i.e. sign (e.g. sounds); an interpretant, i.e. user (e.g. interpreting mind);
and a signified, i.e. referent (meaning assigned by Interpretant);
1.2 Classes of signs
symptom (subjective sign):

a compulsive, automatic and non-arbitrary sign, with a natural

link between signifier and signified; unintentional index

e.g. cough, patient's complaint (`I have a pain in my chest.'), or groaning while pointing
cf. objective sign: inflamed throat, wheezing, shadow on X-ray
icon: the signifier bears some natural likeness to the signifier (association by similarity);
Intentional
e.g. images: photo
diagrams (relational): tense iconicity
metaphors: He's the key to the problem.
index: signified is proximate to signifier, or is a sample/part of it (association by contiguity)
e.g. - pointing finger, symtoms of disease (unintentional index), letters attached to a diagram;
- logical relations: cause-to-effect, spatial/temporal connection
- metonymy (part for whole): All hands on deck, the Crown
- grammar: dem, rel pron, tenses, POSS case, all designating indexical rel between signifier &
signified

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symbol: association by convention; arbitrary/unnatural

e.g.

emblems (the maple leaf)

- linguistic signs: sound-meaning correspondences

Use of symbolic signs distinguishes man from other communicating animates.

Communication involves conventional messages (to signify by prior agreement) and natural messages
(to signify by non-arbitrariness). While the former are expressed by symbolic signs, the latter tend to be
expressed by iconic or indexical signs (e.g. bee dance).
1.3 Indexical expressions (Levinson 1983)
1.3.1 person deixis

encodes P(articipant) roles in speech event (as those discussed in Goffman):

e.g. speaker (`I'), addressee (`you'), other (`s/he', etc.)

Other roles: animator, author, principal, audience, overhearers, unratified vs. ratified Ps
(3) a. Parent:
(To child) Fasten your sear-belt.
b. Air hostess: You are to fasten your seat-belts now.
Person deixis here is encoded not in personal pronouns, but in preferred verb forms (imp. vs. inf.).
1.3.1 place deixis

encodes spatial locations relative to P's location in speech event

proximal (close to speaker):
this, here
non-proximal: (distant from speaker; can be close to addressee): that, there

(5) a. The parking lot is 200 yards away.

b. He's coming/going.
1.3.2 time deixis
encodes temporal points/spans relative to the time of U (coding time)
(6) I'll be back in an hour.
(anchored to the time of U)
Other examples: now, then, soon, recently, yesterday, this year; tense

1.3.4 discourse/text deixis

encodes reference to portions of unfolding disourse in which U is located
(7) a. I bet you haven't heard this story.
b. That was the funniest story I've ever heard.

(cataphoric)
(anaphoric)

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Other e.g.: but, therefore, to conclude, to the contrary, after all, etc.
1.3.5 social deixis
encodes social distinctions relative to P-roles, esp. social relationship between S & H/other
(8) a. May I approach the bench, Your Honour?
b. His Excellency is expecting you.
Other honorifics:

(addressee honorific)
(referent honorific)

Yes, sir; vu/vous (Fr.), n/nn (Ch.), arimasen (Jap.)

residence, lady, dine, depart

(9) Deixis is organized ego-centrically:

a. the central person is S;
b. the central time is the time at which S produces the U;
c. the central place is S's location at U time;
d. the discourse centre is where S is in producing her U;
e. the social centre is S's social status and rank relative to that of addressee or referent.
This ego-centricity correlates to indexical signs' nature of association by contiguity.
1.5 Conclusion