Discourse analysis

Discourse is a generalization of the notion of a conversation to any form of communication. Discourse is a major topic in social theory, with work spanning fields such as sociology, anthropology, continental philosophy, and discourse analysis. Following work by Michel Foucault, these fields view discourse as a system of thought, knowledge, or communication that constructs our world experience. Since control of discourse amounts to control of how the world is perceived, social theory often studies discourse as a window into power. Within theoretical linguistics, discourse is understood more nar

In semiotics, linguistics, sociology and anthropology, context refers to those objects or entities which surround a focal event, in these disciplines typically a communicative event, of some kind. Context is "a frame that surrounds the event and provides resources for its appropriate interpretation". It is thus a relative concept, only definable with respect to some focal event within a frame, not independently of that frame.

large and structured set of texts being the basis for linguistic research

thumb|Leonardo Bruni's translation of Aristotle's Poetics Poetics is the study or theory of poetry, specifically the study or theory of device, structure, form, type, and effect with regards to poetry, though usage of the term can also refer to literature broadly. Poetics is distinguished from hermeneutics by its focus on the synthesis of non-semantic elements in a text rather than its semantic interpretation. Most literary criticism combines poetics and hermeneutics in a single analysis; however, one or the other may predominate given the text and the aims of the one doing the reading.

form of language used for a particular purpose or in a particular communicative situation

generic term for the analysis of social, language policy or historiographical discourse phenomena

branch of linguistics that studies language through examples contained in real texts

utterance that serves a performative function

thumb|Utterance being spoken

In philosophy, '''' (; ) is knowledge or understanding. The term epistemology'' (the branch of philosophy concerning knowledge) is derived from .

branch of linguistics

a cliché that evolved into a rhetorical tactic

grammatical and lexical linking in text

concept in critical theory

study of social interaction, embracing both verbal and non-verbal conduct, in situations of everyday life

word or phrase that manages the flow of discourse: e.g. oh, well, now, then, you know, and I mean, so, because, and, but, or

the context in which a text, or object, has been created, and its function and purpose at that time

effect of an utterance on an interlocutor

social and linguistic theory of politeness

linguistic study

performance of an utterance in linguistics and the philosophy of mind

analysis of communication

form of discourse analysis that focuses on psychological themes in talk, text and images

theory of text organization

Interdiscourse is the implicit or explicit relations that a discourse has to other discourses. Interdiscursivity is the aspect of a discourse that relates it to other discourses. Norman Fairclough prefers the concept "orders of discourse". Interdiscursivity is often mostly an analytic concept, e.g. in Foucault and Fairclough. Interdiscursivity has close affinity to recontextualisation because interdiscourse often implies that elements are imported from another discourse.

tracking of referential information by speakers