DISCOURSE ANALYSIS AND LANGUAGE TEACHING ASSIGNMENTS

Lecturer: Dr. Sujoko, M. A

Book Resume: Text and Discourse by Raphael Salkie

by Pratika Ayuningtyas S891102034

ENGLISH EDUCATION GRADUATE PROGRAM SEBELAS MARET UNIVERSITY 2011

BOOK RESUME TEXT AND DISCOURSE BY RAPHAEL SALKIE

Text and Discourse Analysis was firstly published in London in 1995 by Routledge. The author of the book is Raphael Salkie. This book consists of 128 pages including the cover page. There are three main parts of the book: (a) Part 1. Lexical Cohesion, (b) 2. Part Other Kinds of Cohesion, and (c) Part 3. Beyond Cohesion. In details please look at the list below: Part 1. Lexical Cohesion: 1. Word repetition 2. Using synonyms 3. Superordinals and generals 4. Opposites and related words Part 2. Other Kinds of Cohesion 1. Substitutes 2. More substitution 3. Ellipsis 4. Reference words 5. Connectives Part 3. Beyond Cohesion Larger patterns

I choose this book because this book covers all the materials discussed in the Discourse Analysis class. This book is not a normal textbook but a workbook. It does not try to tell details things, but this book tries to help to ask interesting questions about language- especially on discourse matter. This book introduces the reader to analyze one part of language- text and discourse. This book explains enough about: What terms text and discourse mean Issues deals with those two terms How to use analytical tool to help exploring the issues This book covers some basic ideas and techniques in analyzing text and discourse. Text and discourse analysis is one area of linguistics, the systematic study of language. A text, or a discourse, is a stretch of language that may be longer than one sentence. Thus text and discourse analysis is about how sentences combine to forms texts. The sentences are combined to make an acceptable text. Take a look on these two paragraphs. (a) Its practically impossible to restrain children when they get to grips with technology. Which is why the computer equipment used in schools has to be designed and built to a standard above and beyond the normal call of duty. A standard thats set by Research Machines. (b) Which is why the computer equipment used in schools has to be designed and built to a standard above and beyond the normal call of duty. Its practically impossible to restrain children when they get to grips with technology. A standard thats set by Research Machines.

The first paragraph (a) may not be very interesting or exciting text, but it is certainly all right. It doesnt break any rules or sound wrong of give the impression that whoever who wrote it hasnt learned English properly. But when we combine the sentences differently, as in (b) we can see that the sentences dont fit together in sensible way. Theres nothing wrong if the words are not bind together but when the words are put in one paragraph, the way of combining the sentences is wrong. In (b), as we analyze it in text and discourse, we say it doesnt work incoherent. One of the key issues in test and discourse analysis is to find exactly what it is that makes some texts hang together while other texts are incoherent. We can see from the examples above that a coherent text has certain words and expressions in it which link the sentences together. Expressions like which is why, and the use of repetition, are known as cohesive devices: they are like glue which holds different parts of a text together. Cohesive devices are only one factor in making a text coherent, but they are a good place to start studying of text and discourse because they are quite easy to identify. Just as important in making texts coherent are the intentions, expectations and background knowledge of the text producer and the text receiver. We should make sure that grammar in linguistics means describing how people actually do combine words into sentences, without passing judgment about whether these sentences are correct, meaning socially approved of. Linguistics takes the same kind of approach in text and discourse analysis. The aim of the book is to find out how to make a text coherent.

This book also make an interchangeably of two terms, text and discourse. Some linguists distinguish between text and discourse, using text to mean what one speaker or writer says, while a discourse for them has two or more speakers or writers interacting. In this book the two terms are interchangeably to refer any stretch of language that may be longer than a single sentence, and which therefore may have structural properties which go beyond the scope of grammar. For the sake of simplicity the book shall usually uses the word text.