ENGLISH LINGUISTICS AND ESP

Academic Year 2022/2023 - Teacher: MARCO VENUTI

Expected Learning Outcomes

1) Knowledge and understanding:
Understanding complex (written and spoken) texts in authentic communicative contexts (news and social media)
Understanding the communicative function of texts in specific, domains.
Knowing the relevant analytical frameworks for the three modules.
2) Applying knowledge and understanding:
Being able to identify, analyse and interpret linguistic and semiotic resources which are relevant to specific contexts and domains (news and social media).
and to use the appropriate tools and statistical measures which better fit with the necessary quantitative analyses.
3) Making judgements:
Being able to identify, analyse and interpret textual data within a complex context, and to use the most appropriate and effective research approach, motivating necessary choices.
4) Communication skills:
Being able to explain and support the various stages of the analysis and its findings in a structured and clear way, making use of an appropriate register and style.
5) Learning skills:
Starting from the knowledge, understanding, and competence developed in the module, being able to continue the graduate programme in a largely self-directed and autonomous way.

Course Structure

Lectures, workshops, and language tuition in English

Required Prerequisites

A C1 competence in English. Basic notions in English Linguistics and Discourse Analysis Linguistica inglese e di Analisi del Discorso.
Basic computer skills

Detailed Course Content

The module is divided into three sub-modules:
Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) (Prof. Halliday): This sub-module offers an introduction to CDA for a critical reading and interpretation of various authentic texts
The Language of Social Media (Prof. Venuti): This sub-module focuses on the language of social media from a variety of perspectives.

Textbook Information

Critical Discourse Analysis:
Machin, David and Mayr, Andrea 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis. A Multimodal Introduction, London, SAGE Publications Ltd, pp. 236.
Castro Seixas, Eunice, 2021 “War Metaphors in Political Communication on Covid-19”, Frontiers in Sociology, 5,
https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fsoc.2020.583680.
Törnberg, Anton and Törnberg, Petter, “Muslims in social media discourse: Combining topic modeling and critical discourse analysis”, Discourse, Context & Media,Volume 13, Part B, September 2016, pp. 132-142, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2016.04.003.
The Language of Social Media:
Page, Ruth, Barton, David, Unger, Johann W., Zappavigna, Michele 2014 Researching Language and Social Media. A Student Guide, London Routledge, pp. 201.
Krendel, A., McGlashan, M., & Koller, V. (forthcoming 2022). The representation of gendered social actors across five manosphere communities on Reddit. Corpora, 17(2), pp.25.
Leppänen, Sirpa and Tapionkaski, Sanna 2021 “Doing gender and sexuality intersectionally in multimodal social media practices” in Jo Angouri and Juduth Baxter (eds), The Routledge Handbook of Language, Gender, and Sexuality, London: Routledge, pp. 543-556.
Varis, Pila 2021 “Digital ethnography in the study of language, gender, and sexuality”, in Jo Angouri and Juduth Baxter (eds), The Routledge Handbook of Language, Gender, and Sexuality, London: Routledge, pp. 164-177.

Please remember that in compliance with art 171 L22.04.1941, n. 633 and its amendments, it is illegal to copy entire books or journals, only 15% of their content can be copied.
For further information on sanctions and regulations concerning photocopying please refer to the regulations on copyright (Linee Guida sulla Gestione dei Diritti d’Autore) provided by AIDRO - Associazione Italiana per i Diritti di Riproduzione delle opere dell’ingegno (the Italian Association on Copyright).
All the books listed in the programs can be consulted in the Library.

Course Planning

 SubjectsText References
1Introduction to CDAMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 1
2The analysis of semiotic choicesMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 2
3Representing speech and speakersMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 3
4Representing peopleMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 4
5Representing actionMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 5
6Nominalisation and presuppositionMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 6
7Rhetoric and metaphorMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 7
8Truth, modality and hedgingMachin and Mayr 2012, How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis, Chapter 8
9War Metaphors in Political Communication on Covid-19Castro Seixas 2021
10Muslims in social media discourseTörnberg and Törnberg 2016
11What is social media?Page, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 1
12Linguistics and social mediaPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 2
13Research and social mediaPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 3
14Internet research ethicsPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 4
15Qualitative approaches to Discourse analysisPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 5
16Ethnographic approaches to Discourse analysisPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 6
17Language practices in social mediaPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 7
18Collecting Social media dataPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 8
19Social media and quantitatve analysisPage, Barton, Unger, Zappavigna 2014 Researching Language and Social Media, chapter 9
20The representation of gendered social actors on ReddditKrendel, McGlashan, & Koller 2022
21Digital ethnography in the study of language, gender, and sexualityVaris 2021
22Doing gender and sexuality intersectionally in multimodal social media practicesLeppänen and Tapionkaski 2021

Learning Assessment

Examples of frequently asked questions and / or exercises

What is the goal of CDA?
What is the function of the representational strategies of Social Actors?
What is the role of transitivity in CDA?
What is Discourse?
CMC, Intertnet 2.0, Digital media, Social media: similarities and differences.
What is a digital ethnograpy?
What is the relationship of identity and intersectionality in social media practices?
VERSIONE IN ITALIANO