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National Research University Higher School of Economics Jodairi Pineh, A. (2017). Directions in Discourse Analysis: Theory & Method.
Journal of Language & Education Volume 3, Issue 4, 2017 Jalilifar A. R. (Eds.). Ahvaz, Iran: University of Ahvaz Press, 2014. 370 pp.
ISBN 978-600-141-158-8. Journal of Language and Education, 5(4), 76-77. doi:10.17323/2411-7390-2017-3-4-76-77
Directions in Discourse Analysis: Theory & Method. Jalilifar A. R. (Eds.). Ahvaz, Iran: University of Ahvaz Press, 2014. 370 pp. ISBN 978-600-141-158-8
Aiyoub Jodairi Pineh
University of Zanjan
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Aiyoub Jodairi Pineh, University of Zanjan, University Blvd., Zanjan, Islamic Republic of Iran, 45371-38791. E-mail: j.pineh@znu.ac.ir
Plenty of books have written in Discourse Analysis, and the book, Directions in Discourse Analysis: Theory & Method, is another welcomed addition to this vital field of Applied Linguistics. Many books in this field are limited to a specific framework of discourse analysis (Coulthard, 1992; Christie, 2002; Gee, 1999; Walsh, 2006) to name but a few. Introducing a specific theoretical framework and orientation has almost been a tradition in preparing such textbooks, while it seems that there is a need for publications which take into account the fast-growing field of discourse analysis, where discerning similarities and differences are becoming subtle. Directions in Discourse Analysis: Theory & Method by Professor Jalilifar is another attempt to meet such a need. As the title of the book indicates, the emphasis is on a wide range of recent approaches, wherein the author presents them under a separate but a related chapter. He successfully brings together similar and contradictory themes under a single topic.
The book consists of nine chapters. Chapter one, Discourse Analysis: Background to the Discipline, is an overview of major approaches to discourse analysis. It provides definitions from well-known discourse analysts and surveys the history of discourse analysis. It is dense so that it might be difficult for novice readers to digest them all. Chapter two, Spoken and Written Discourse, is a meaty section of the book which takes on the importance of corpus-based studies by comparing both written and spoken discourses. It elaborates on context, genres, cohesive devices, and stylistic features through some international and local studies, and shows the contribution and insights of such studies in language teaching and learning. Chapter three, Classroom Discourse, provides various definitions of classroom discourse and its role in the development of English language both as a medium and object of learning. The author concisely introduces
three important approaches in classroom discourse such as Interactional Analysis, Discourse Analysis, and Conversation Analysis. Although the author addresses merits and demerits of these approaches, he does not frame them in the concluding section. Chapter four, Workplace Discourse, is another thick section of the book which explores distinctive features of workplace discourses in professional and institutional contexts. A myriad of data from formal meetings to informal conversations, and from letters to emails have been surveyed. Chapter five, What Is Metadiscourse, elaborates on the definition of Metadiscourse and makes a distinction between Metadiscourse in propositional meanings and Metadiscourse in the deployment of discourses. Different Metadiscourse taxonomies and its variation under different genres/cultures are explored for teaching and learning in the classroom settings. Chapter six, Genre Analysis: Perspectives from ESP and Contrastive Rhetoric, introduces another useful tool for discourse analysis. It contextualises genre analysis within two famous approaches of English for Specific Purposes and Contrastive Rhetoric. The last section of the chapter tracks some criticisms in deploying genre-based pedagogies. I think there is still a room to include two other famous genre pedagogies, i.e. the Sydney genre school and the New Rhetoric along with the aforementioned approaches. Chapter seven, What Is Corpus-based Linguistics? first, introduces a corpus-based approach for data collection in a large-scale data collection procedure. Second, it discusses different types of corpora and their contribution to other sub-fields of linguistics. Third, it describes data collection procedures, its applications and techniques for data analysis. The last part deals with the application of corpus linguistics. Chapter eight, Critical Discourse Analysis, indicates how Critical Discourse Analysis aims to complement micro and macro language features of politicised language. To this end, the author discusses
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DIRECTIONS IN DISCOURSE ANALYSIS: THEORY & METHOD.
major relevant theories and models under three parts. The first part which is devoted to dominant theories and models is related to language, discourse, ideology, and power. The second part deals with the definition of X-phemisim and typologies. The third part discusses approaches to media and newspapers. Chapter nine, New Directions in Discourse Analysis, encapsulates five emerging trends in discourse analysis such as political, computer-mediated, media, identity, and gender. The author highlights the importance of such trends in the future studies.
One of the outstanding features of this book is the presentation of chapters. The focus of chapters is on theory, methods of analyses, and samples of applications. In fact, what makes this book distinct among other similar publications are the presentation of the most recent approaches to discourse analysis without being biased in favouring one approach over the other and its contextualisation. This initiative makes it possible to skim through and jump to relevant theoretical concepts, appropriate tool selection, and applications. In fact, the presented frameworks in each chapter can be deployed to include the new trends highlighted in the final chapter. Among other things, the book deploys sample studies both from the international and local contexts. It seems that the author has been successful in making equilibrium between the studies carried out locally with those across the globe. One small shortcoming though is that despite the different perspectives presented
throughout the book, some of the chapters lack the adequate background to the concepts and theoretical frameworks. It might be the source of confusion for those who are not well-acquainted with the field of discourse studies. Another comment is that since the volume deals with a range of concepts and topics, adding a final conclusion section that reflects on and ties together the different ideas, would have been beneficial.
Overall, the manuscript is reader-friendly, and it includes major trends in discourse analysis. It can be used both as a textbook for the teaching and learning as well as a practical reference guide.
References
Christie, F. (2002). Classroom discourse analysis: A functional perspective. London & New York: Continuum.
Coulthard, M. (1992). Advances in spoken discourse analysis. London & New York: Routledge.
Gee, J. P. (1999). An introduction to discourse analysis: Theory & method. London, UK: Routledge.
Jalilifar, A. R. (2014). Directions in discourse analysis: Theory & method. Ahvaz, Iran: Shahid Chamran University Press.
Walsh, S. (2006). Investigating classroom discourse. London & New York: Routledge.
