Mitigation is the modification of language in response to social or cognitive challenges (stressors) in contexts of linguistic interaction (Martinovski, Mao, Gratch, & Marsella 2005). Previous mitigation research has been largely from social perspectives, addressing the word or utterance levels of language. This dissertation presents an empirical study of mitigating language resulting from both a cognitive stressor (degree of uncertainty) and social stressor (degree of imposition) in Spanish discourse, and the impacts of mitigation on interaction and interlocutors. The tripartite approach includes a: (1) quantitative analysis of discourse markers associated with mitigation (speaker-discourse, speaker-listener, and epistemic markers); (2) qualitative discourse analysis, relying on concepts from the Conversation Analysis framework; and (3) qualitative analysis of interlocutors’ perceptions of mitigation, using metalinguistic conversations. The results are discussed considering prior research on mitigation, politeness theories, and Clark’s (2006) model of ‘language use’ to address information types, interlocutor roles, and mutual knowledge. In addition, Caffi and Janney’s (1994) ‘anticipatory schemata’ and Pinker’s (2007) social psychological perspective of indirect language inform the theoretical framework. Results indicate that: (1) Mitigation devices vary depending on contextual factors prompting mitigation, significantly fewer speaker-listener markers are shown as evidence of mitigation, and epistemic markers, which are commonly analyzed mitigation devices, are infrequent overall in these data. These results provide evidence against the assumption that mitigation is associated with increased use of linguistic devices; (2) Two mitigating discourse structures were found, depending on the degree of uncertainty. Within contexts of high-imposition, the Co-reconstruction structure (CRS) is found in contexts with uncertainty and the Non-linear structure (NLS) is in contexts with certainty; and (3) The listeners’ metalinguistic comments indicate that the CRS, compared to the NLS, is preferred. Also, the results indicate how interlocutors address cognitive, social, and emotional stressors in interaction. Considering all analyses, a unifying definition of mitigation in discourse is provided. This phenomenon is characterized as the postponement of both confirmed knowledge and negotiation of the interlocutor relationship. This research contributes the first experimental investigation of mitigation as the result of cognitive and social stressors, and also the first systematic analysis of mitigation in Spanish discourse. / text

This paper presents the results of a critical discourse analysis of a selection of Canada’s security texts and argues that the country’s security discourses construct Muslims as dangerous and different from the normative Canadian. The research relies on a social constructionist understanding of discourse and the recognition that our state’s representatives and agents, operating from positions of discursive power, wield disproportionate influence in directing the national conversation and managing the signals that shape our social attitudes and imaginaries. By persistently qualifying terrorism with Islam, portraying the terrorist figure as a religiously and ideologically-motivated actor opposed to ‘Western values’ and by casting suspicion on the ordinary behaviour of Muslims, Canada’s security discourses produce a mental model in which Islam and its followers are associated with a propensity for terrorist violence. The discourses also naturalize the idea that Muslims are in need of surveillance, not only by the state’s agents, but by the public itself. When examined alongside a body of research illustrating Canada’s ‘visible minority’ population continues to be negatively affected by dominant group discrimination, the results of the study raise questions about the culpability of state representatives in the reproduction of ideas of difference which continue to inform the country’s social imaginary and hinder the equality and inclusivity of minority groups within the national collective.

Cette thèse présente une étude sémantico-pragmatique des emplois dialogiques de mais, oui, non et de leurs quatre combinaisons : mais oui, mais non, oui mais et non mais. Les enchaînements dialogiques « X – Mais Y » posent la question de l’unicité du sens du connecteur oppositif, étant donné que la relation entre les énoncés X et Y est très différente de celle qui s’établit entre les énoncés dans les configurations monologiques « X mais Y ». Dans cette thèse, les deux types d’enchaînement avec mais sont analysés dans le cadre de la sémantique dynamique, qui propose de décrire le sens des expressions linguistiques à partir de leur capacité à modifier le contexte. L’opération énonciative de mais est spécifiée à partir des contraintes imposées sur le contexte linguistique environnant, que l’examen de divers usages contextuels de mais en monologue et en dialogue a permis de révéler. Cet examen conduit à conclure que la spécificité des enchaînements dialogiques avec mais n’est pas liée à la sémantique du connecteur, mais à la progression du discours, différente en monologue et en dialogue. Les combinaisons de mais avec oui et avec non sont étudiées après une analyse détaillée du marqueur de validation et du marqueur de rejet. La façon dont ces deux marqueurs interagissent avec le contexte gauche témoigne de leur asymétrie sémantique, confirmée par la possibilité de les utiliser en tant que formes concurrentes pour valider un énoncé négatif. Dans les combinaisons de oui et de non avec mais, le second élément détermine le type de relation signalée : oui mais et non mais marquent l’opposition, tandis que mais oui et mais non traduisent la validation et le rejet. Néanmoins, le premier élément a des incidences sur l’interprétation du second. Ainsi, les réactions mais oui et mais non présentent l’information validée ou rejetée comme déjà admise dans le contexte ou, au contraire, comme exclue et donc impossible à envisager. En revanche, dans les réactions oui mais et non mais, le connecteur oppositif enchaîne sur l’information accessible à la suite de l’emploi du premier marqueur. / This dissertation presents a semantic-pragmatic study of dialogic uses of mais, oui, non and their four combinations : mais oui, mais non, oui mais et non mais. The dialogic sequences “X – Mais Y” raise the question of the uniqueness of the oppositive connector, because the relationship between the utterances X and Y is very different from that which is established between both utterances in the “X mais Y” monologic configurations. In this dissertation, the two types of linking with mais are analyzed in the framework of dynamic semantics, which aims to describe the meaning of linguistic expressions from their ability to change the context. The enunciative operation of mais is specified from the constraints on the surrounding linguistic context that the examination of various contextual uses of mais in monologue and dialogue revealed. This examination leads to the conclusion that the specificity of dialogic sequences with mais is not related to the semantics of the connector, but the progress of speech, which is different in monologue and dialogue. Combinations of mais with oui and non are considered after a previous detailed analysis of validation marker and rejection marker. The way these two markers interact with the left context reflects their semantic asymmetry, confirmed by the possibility of using them as competing forms to confirm a negative utterance. In combination of oui and non with mais, the second element determines the type of relationship: oui mais and non mais mark the opposition, while mais oui and mais non reflect validation and rejection. However, the first element has a clear implication on the interpretation of the second one. In that sense mais oui and mais non responses present the validated or rejected information as already accepted in the context or, on the contrary, excluded, and therefore impossible to consider. On the other hand, in reactions with oui mais and non mais the oppositive connector regards the information accessible next to the use of the first marker.

Cette thèse en analyse du discours a pour objectif l'analyse comparative et l'analyse critique du discours sur l'allaitement dans deux communautés ethnolinguistiques différentes : la France et l'Allemagne. La question à l'origine de notre recherche est la suivante : choisir d'allaiter est-il réellement un choix ou les femmes suivent-elles le chemin tracé par les auteurs ? Nous avons réuni un corpus composé de brochures institutionnelles et de guides parentaux. Dans notre travail, nous avons relevé la façon dont les auteurs de ces guides et brochures se placent dans leur discours ainsi que les arguments qu'ils mettent en avant afin de convaincre les femmes d'allaiter. L'étude des caractérisations du lait et de l'allaitement dans notre corpus de textes franco-allemands nous a permis de montrer que ces auteurs laissent peu de place au choix d'allaiter même si cette absence relative de choix ne se traduit pas de la même manière dans les deux communautés ethnolinguistiques étudiées. / The objective of this thesis in discourse analysis is a critical and comparative analysis of discourses about breastfeeding in two different ethnolinguistic communities: France and Germany. The original research question is: is the option of breastfeeding a real choice or do women follow the path lined up by authors ? We gathered a corpus composed of institutional booklets and parent's manuals. In our research, we have considered how the authors of these guides and booklets are positioning themselves in their discourses and the arguments put forward to convince women to breastfeed. The study of milk and breastfeeding characterizations in our corpus of French and German texts has allowed us to show that these authors leave little opportunity to choosing breastfeeding, even if this lack of choice is translated in a different way in the two ethnolinguistic communities studied.

A proposta geral deste trabalho é discutir e refletir acerca da dicotomia ficção/realidade cada vez mais presente nas telenovelas contemporâneas, realizando uma aproximação interdisciplinar das questões relacionadas ao estudo dos mecanismos referentes à organização discursiva e temática da telenovela Vidas Opostas, da Rede Record, com enfoque na problemática da violência social. Mais especificamente, temos como meta a exploração das possibilidades oferecidas pela Análise do Discurso para a operação de objetos visuais ou verbo-visuais e a aplicação de uma metodologia de análise para a telenovela em questão, verificando como é construído o seu discurso sobre a violência. Isso exigiu, assim, um aprofundamento teórico e, ao mesmo tempo, uma ampliação na perspectiva da construção teórico-metodológica, ainda mais a se considerar a especificidade do objeto, que além do nãoverbal, lida com imagens em movimento. Pudemos perceber, nas análises realizadas, a existência de uma forte demarcação na representação dos espaços configurados como a favela e o asfalto, demarcação que não se limitou apenas à figurativização desses lugares, mas disseminou-se sobre os múltiplos planos do discurso da telenovela. No que tange a temática da violência, foi possível observar que, apesar de retratar a violência como elemento constituinte desses dois ambientes, essa territorialização discursiva também se mantém. Sendo assim, pudemos identificar em Vidas Opostas não apenas uma demarcação espacial desses ambientes da favela e do asfalto, mas também e principalmente uma demarcação discursiva, que por um lado enaltece a favela, e de outro, critica a sociedade do asfalto. Com essa proposta, a telenovela pretende, de certa forma, desvirtuar-se do padrão imposto tradicionalmente pela Rede Globo, por meio de tratamento temático e estético diferenciado. Ela se propõe como produto que dá visibilidade às camadas marginalizadas da sociedade, cumprindo assim uma função social que estaria além do entretenimento e alienação. Contudo, esse esforço de superar a emissora rival faz a trama oscilar constantemente entre a inovação e a tradição. Por um lado, procura diferenciar-se de outras tramas por meio de experimentações na linguagem, especialmente no que se refere à representação da realidade; por outro lado, a trama apresenta uma série de elementos bastante característicos da telenovela brasileira, como pudemos observar nas análises. / This research has as its proposal to discuss and reflect on the dichotomy fiction/reality present in contemporary Brazilian soap operas, performing an interdisciplinary approach of the issues concerning the mechanisms of discursive and thematic organization of the soap opera Vidas Opostas, broadcasted by Rede Record, focusing the subject of social violence. More precisely, we aim to explore the possibilities offered by Discourse Analysis to the operation of visual and verb-visual objects and to the implementation of an analysis methodology to the soap opera, verifying how its discourse on violence is constructed. It required, therefore, a theoretical deepen and, at the same time, an expansion in terms of theoretical-methodological construction, further considering the object specificity, which is constituted not only by nonverbal language, but also by moving images. In our analysis, we realized the existence of a strong demarcation in the representation of the spaces configured as the favela and the asfalto; this demarcation was not limited only to the characterization of these places, but it has spread out to the various plans of the discourse. Regarding the thematic of violence, we observed that, despite the representation of violence as a constitutive element of these two places, the discursive territory construction also remains. Thus, we identified in Vidas Opostas not only a geographical demarcation of the spaces called favela and asfalto, but also (and primarily) a discursive demarcation, which on the one hand exalts the favela and in the other hand, criticizes the asfalto. With this proposal, the soap opera intends to differ itself from the pattern tradicionally imposed by Rede Globo television, through distinctive thematic and aesthetic construction. It proposes itself as a television product which gives visibility to marginalized categories of society, thus accomplishing a social function beyond entertainment and alienation. However, this effort to overcome its rival broadcaster makes the soap opera constantly oscillate between innovation and tradition. On the one hand, it aims at distinct itself from other soap operas through experimentation in language, especially in the reality representation; on the other hand, it presents various elements which is typical of Brazilian soap operas, as we could see in our analysis.

Objetivo: Os anúncios veiculados nas capas dos jornais gratuitos Metro e Destak, de São Paulo, apresentam um nível de diálogo entre linguagem publicitária e jornalística pouco comum ao que se observa nos periódicos tradicionais. A aproximação entre esses dois campos também é sentida em algumas chamadas de capa gênero marcadamente jornalístico que recorrem a vários elementos do discurso publicitário. Esta pesquisa busca identificar os mecanismos utilizados pelos anunciantes de jornais gratuitos e pelo veículo em si para obter tal efeito nos dois casos analisados. Métodos: Os conceitos de dialogia de Mikhail Bakhtin e da Análise de Discurso francesa são a principal fundamentação teórica a ser aplicada em uma seleção de anúncios e chamadas nas capas de Metro e Destak. Resultados: embora o mercado jornalístico cultive uma imagem dos gratuitos como concorrentes dos jornais pagos populares, as conclusões da análise do corpus reforçam uma estratégia definida pelos gratuitos de se associar a um público jovem, urbano e de bom poder aquisitivo. / Objective: The advertisements published on the front page of the free dailies Metro and Destak, from São Paulo, show a level of dialogue between advertising and journalistic language that is not commonly seen in traditional newspapers. These two discourses get also closer in some top headlines a traditional room for journalistic content that incorporate many elements of the advertising discourse. This study is aimed at identifying the strategies used by both advertisers and the media outlet itself to prompt this effect. Methods: The concepts of dialogism by Mikhail Bakhtin and the French Discourse Analysis are the theoretical basis to be applied to a selection of advertisements and top headlines of Metro and Destak. Results: although the journalistic market regards the free dailies as competitors to popular newspapers, the conclusions drawn from our analysis emphasize a strategy adopted by the free dailies of associating their brand with a young, urban, wealthy audience.

The continuous rise of socio-economic inequality over the past decades with its connected political outcomes such as the Brexit vote in the UK, and the election of Donald Trump are currently a matter of intense debate both in academia and in journalism. A significant sign of the heightened interest was the surprise popularity of Thomas Piketty's Capital in the 21st Century. The book reached the top of the bestseller lists and was described as a "media Sensation" and Piketty himself as a "rock star Economist". This paper, drawing from a major international and cross-disciplinary study, investigates the print media treatment in four European countries of economic policy proposals presented in Capital. Applying social semiotic and critical discourse analysis, we specifically focus on articles which are in disagreement with these proposals and identify five categories of counterarguments used against Piketty: authorisation, moralisation, rationalisation, portrayal of victimhood and inevitability. Providing textual and linguistic examples we demonstrate how the use of linguistic resources normalises and conventionalises ideology-laden discourses of economic means (taxation) and effects, reinforcing particular views of social relations and class as common sense and therewith upholding and perpetuating power relations and inequalities. / Series: Department of Economics Working Paper Series

The purpose of this study was to examine how the climate summits arranged by the UN in Kyoto 1997, Copenhagen 2009 and Paris 2015 was portrayed by the Swedish daily newspaper Dagens Nyheter. The purpose was also to examine how the problem of climate change was portrayed in the paper in conjunction with the above mentioned climate summits. This was done by using the method critical discourse analysis. A total of 39 articles published in Dagens Nyheter during the time of the different summits was thoroughly analyzed using the method. The results show that Climate change is consequently described as an important issue and a problem that could result in large consequences for the entire planet if the different negotiating parts at the summits could not reach an agreement. The negotiations are described as tough, with countries having big difficulties reaching an agreement. In articles from all three summits the negotiating parts will, or unwillingness, to cooperate and taking responsibility for the situation is described as a key factor in order for the summits to achieve success. However, the media discourse in Dagens Nyheter regarding what taking responsibllity actually means has changed between the different conferences. In the Kyoto-articles being a responsible actor for preventing climate change were described to act according to the line of action already established by the United Nations. However the articles from the meetings held in Copenhagen and Paris described responsibility as something that can only be performed within the political frameworks realm of possibllity.The results also show that solutions to the problem of climate change are described exclusively as something that needs to be done within a liberal economic framework. Economic growth is described as something necessary for countries to develop and humanity’s adjustments to climate change must therefore be done without disrupting the current economic balance too severely.

The paper concentrates on which language means may be included into the annotation of discourse relations in the Prague Dependency Treebank (PDT) and tries to examine the so called alternative lexicalizations of discourse markers (AltLex's) in Czech. The analysis proceeds from the annotated data of PDT and tries to draw a comparison between the Czech AltLex's from PDT and English AltLex's from PDTB (the Penn Discourse Treebank). The paper presents the lexico-syntactic and semantic characterization of the Czech AltLex's and comments on the current stage of their annotation in PDT. In the current version, PDT contains 306 expressions (out of the total 43,955 of sentences) that were labeled by annotators as being an AltLex. However, as the analysis demonstrates, this number is not final. We suppose that it will increase after the further elaboration, as AltLex's are not restricted to a limited set of syntactic classes and some of them exhibit a great degree of variation.

In this thesis, I explore how performance storytellers create intense focus on imaginal realities through language—a phenomenon sometimes called “transport” or “realm-shift.” To this end, recordings of performances by two professional storytellers were transcribed and examined through the lens of frame theory and discourse analysis. Examination of these transcripts shows that storytellers employ clusters of linguistic involvement strategies around frame transitions, facilitating realm-shift. Additionally, it shows that throughout a telling, tellers shape discourse around frame shifts that draw attention to significant elements, particularly those that establish a story’s relevance to the occasion of its telling and those that contribute to meaningful story interpretation. This research highlights the ways that meaningful interpretation of a story depends on successful navigation of frames, revealing that the power of a storytelling event depends largely on the connections between realms of discourse.