Women's and men's responses regarding perceived speaker sex and the politeness of given utterances were examined through the use of a questionnaire administered to 90 people, 45 men and 45 women. The questionnaire required respondents to rate the politeness of each utterance and label each as being more likely spoken by a man or by a woman. Factors possibly affecting perceptions--such as power, prestige, and the stereotypical conversational structures of both men and women--were addressed through others' research in this area. Additionally, all tested sentences were analyzed in light of linguistic politeness theory regarding on-record and off-record speech. This analysis details each utterance through examining the type of politeness strategy each utterance typifies.

The following rhetorical criticism is an investigation of two public service announcements released by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Utilizing a composite method derived from Osborn (1994), Brummett (1991) and Burke (1945), this study investigates what it means when to say how others ought to act and why they ought to act that way. This investigation demonstrates how the manipulations of identities, ideologies, and action are the elements used to motivate people to act in affirmation of an identity. Moreover, it demonstrates why the motivated social actions serve as foundations for constructing our social reality. Ultimately, it discovers and clarifies a grammar of edification, how that grammar allows for efficient quotidian management, and, thus, why it serves as a tool for managing everyday meaning in our social world.

Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study assumes the theoretical framework of text construction as advanced by Grabe and Kaplan (1996) for the analysis of Sepedi texts of government speeches from the magazine: ANC TODAY. The theory that is used in this study invokes the linguistic elements that can be used by both the teachers and learners to critically analyse texts in classrooms. This genre-theoretic approach is employed as framework, for analysing the linguistic, rhetorical and discourse properties for Sepedi texts. It also addresses the parameters of the ethnography of writing advanced by Grabe and Kaplan: "who writes what to whom, for what purpose, why, when and how?' The text construction analysis executed in the study enable the learners to acquire skills, knowledge and values of outcomes-based language teaching. The information structuring of text analysis and construction enables learners to write, read and use language structure and conventions for learning and career pathways. The textlinguistic strategies for analysing written texts in language teaching enables learners to analyse texts successfully and gain an awareness of language use in texts. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie aanvaar die teoretiese raamwerk van tekskonstruksie soos voorgestaan deur Grabe en Kaplan (1996) in die analise van Sepedi tekste van regeringstoesprake uit die tydskrif ANC TODAY. Die teorie wat aanvaar word, gebruik die linguistiese elemente wat aangewend kan word deur taalonderwysers sowel as taalleerders om tekste krities te ontleed. Die genre-teoretiese benadering word ingespan as raamwerk vir die analise van die linguistiese, retoriese, en diskoerskenmerke van Sepedi tekste. Dit spreek ook die etnografie van skryf, soos voorgestaan deur Grabe en Kaplan, aan: wie skryf wat aan wie, vir watter doel, wanneer, waarom, en hoe. Die tekskonstruksie analise uitgevoer in hierdie studie stel leerders in staat om vaardighede, kennis en waardighede van uitkoms-gebaseerde taalonderrig te verwerf. Die informasie strukturering in teksanalise stel leerders in staat om te lees, skryf en praat in hulle toekomstige beroepe. Die tekslinguistiese strategieë vir die analise van geskrewe tekste in taalonderrig stel leerders in staat om tekste suksesvol te ontleed en 'n bewussyn te ontwikkel van taalgebruik in tekste.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Linguistics / Master / Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics

This paper explores the discourses of emigration in a South African daily newspaper from 1988 to 2001, and discusses the implications of these discourses on the way in which emigration is constructed within South African society In this paper, Potter and Wetherell 's (1987) approach to discourse analysis is utilized. It makes use of interpretative repertoires, to explore the functions and consequences of the discourses. The discursive framework thereby reveals the different subject positions related to nationalism, race and class. It is argued that economics and notions of culture and social class, do more than provide a useful medium through which the phenomenon of emigration can be understood. They also support the affirmations of certain groups of people above others, by claiming that emigration is unpatriotic and disloyal. This paper concludes by identifying the negative connotations of media discourses in the construction of emigration and acknowledges that many alternate constructions are silenced in this matter.

The media, which help define what we think and our roles in the society, have a crucial role to project both men and women’s issues so as to change people’s perceptions and stereotypes about the role men and women play in the society. There is need, therefore, to ensure gender equality in the operations of the media so that issues to do with both men and women get adequate and equal coverage. This study on the reportage of the land redistribution exercise in Zimbabwe has, however, exposed the gendered nature of the operations of the media, particularly in the news production process. It provides that, overally, the news discourse is a masculine narrative whose androcentric form is a result of, and is protected by, claims to ‘objectivity,’ ‘professionalism’, ‘impartiality’ and the pursuit of a journalistic routine system that hegemonically prioritises men’s issues over those of women. The situation, as the research shows, has not been helped by journalists’ incapacity to do thematic appreciation of issues and their over-inclination towards a simplistic event-based journalism that fails to question policies as they are enacted and implemented in gender-skewed processes. The lack of gender policies, the operations of patriarchy and the pursuit of a journalistic routine system that sees nothing wrong with the ostracisation of women issues are very fundamental findings that the research uses in its attempts to explain why the gender equality discourse was left out of the news reports about the land reform exercise in Zimbabwe.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis employs the theoretical framework of text construction advanced by Grabe and Kaplan (1996) for the analysis of human rights magazine texts in isiXhosa. The theory employed in this study includes linguistic elements, which can be included in teaching methodology for developing the learners' analytic skills in analyzing the discourse structure of written texts. These kinds of analytic skills are strongly reflected in Curriculum 2005 for the learning area languages. The thesis employs a range of textlinguistic strategies for analyzing written genre texts on human and civil rights issues. It is argued that the incorporation of these strategies by teachers in the process of language teaching in Curriculum 2005 will enable the learners to analyse texts successfully and to gain an awareness about how language is used in texts. For the purpose of analysis in this thesis, texts from the Bona magazine with contents ranging on human and community or civil rights were collected. The thesis demonstrates that text analysis involves to a large extent, an investigation of generic factors such as the communicative purpose, the culture and the community in which the text is produced. Following the discussion of the generic features of texts, a broad definition of the term text is explored, and the textlinguistic construction and certain levels of analysis are identified. In addition to this, the study demonstrates that analysis of the linguistic structure of texts needs to incorporate the discussion of the parameters of the ethnography of writing advanced by Grabe and Kaplan (1996). The ethnography of writing entails that a detailed analysis of texts should address the following questions: 'Who writes what to whom, for what purpose, why, when and how?' The study explores the implications and rationale for incorporating text analysis in language teaching and learning. Lastly, the relationship between the theoretical underpinnings assumed in this study, and the learning outcomes of Curriculum 2005 are explored. This study demonstrates that the theoretical framework of Grabe and Kaplan (1996) which underlies in the construction of written texts, will not only introduce the language learner to an inclusive language pedagogy, but can be employed for effective text analysis of isiXhosagenre texts on human rights in popular magazineslike Bona. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis maak gebruik van die teoretiese model van Grabe en Kaplan (1996) vir die analise van menseregte tydskrifartikels in isiXhosa. Die teorie wat aangewend word in die studie sluit linguistiese elemente in wat ingesluit kan word in taalonderrigmetodologie vir die ontwikkeling van leerders se analitiese vaardighede in die analise van diskoersstrukture van skriftelike tekste. Hierdie soort analitiese vaardighede word sterk gereflekteer in Kurrikulum 2005 vir die leerarea van tale. Die tesis wend 'n verskeidenheid tekslinguistiese strategieë aan vir die analise van geskrewe genre tekste oor menseregte en burgerlike regte vraagstukke. Daar word betoog in die studie dat die insluiting van hierdie strategieë deur onderwysers in die proses van taalonderrig in Kurrikulum 2005 leerders in staat sal stelom tekste suksesvol te ontleed en 'n bewussyn te kry van hoe taal in tekste gebruik word. Vir die doeleindes van analise is hierdie tesis is tekste gebruik uit die BONA tydskrif met 'n inhoud oor menseregte en gemeenskaps- en burgerlike regte. Die tesis demonstreer dat teksanalise in 'n groot mate 'n ondersoek behels van generiese faktore soos kommunikatiewe doelstelling, die kultuur en die gemeenskap waarin die teks geproduseer word. Na 'n bespreking van die generiese faktore van tekste word 'n breë definisie van die term "teks" ondersoek, en die tekslinguistiese konstruksie en bepaalde vlakke van analise word geïdentifiseer. Hierbenewens demonstreer die studie dat die linguistiese analise van tekste die bespreking moet insluit van die parameters van die etnografie van geskrewe tekste soos voorgestaan deur Grabe en Kaplan (1996). Die etnografie van geskrewe tekste behels dat die analise van tekste die volgende vrae ondersoek: Wie skryf wat vir wie vir watter doel, waarom, wanneer en hoe? Die studie ondersoek die implikasies en motivering vir die insluiting van teksanalise in taalonderrig. Laastens word die verhouding tussen die teoretiese grondslae, wat aanvaar word in hierdie studie, en die leeruitkomste van Kurrikulum 2005 ondersoek. Die studie toon aan dat die teoretiese raamwerk van Grabe en Kaplan (1996), wat onderliggend is aan die konstruksie van geskrewe tekste, kan aanvaar word om leerders in te lei in 'n meer inklusiewe taalonderrig en kan aangewend word vir effektiewe teksanalise van isiXhosa genre tekste gebaseer op die menseregte in populêre tydskrifte soos Bona.

The aim of this master’s thesis is to examine how Swedish public libraries approach and regard lesbian pulp fiction as a genre, from both a historical and modern perspective, and also to visualize and critique the surrounding discourses that influence the perception and reception of the genre. The method is twofold and consists of qualitative interviews as well as discourse analysis inspired by Foucault. The data consists of interviews with three librarians responsible for library collections, selection and purchase of new library materials which is combined with a survey reading of Biblioteksbladet, the periodical of Svensk Biblioteksförening, from 1945–1990. Michel Foucaults theories on discourses and the principles and mechanisms of exclusion, and Pierre Bourdieus theories on taste and distinction, guide the analysis. The analysis focuses to a great extent on discursive patterns, especially concerning the relationship between popular and quality fiction, and components of Bourdieus field theory and how this contributes to the creation of taste through distinction. Throughout the analysis possible explanations regarding the position of lesbian pulp fiction are given which covers areas from classification and interpretation of literary genres to quality assessment, selection and purchase of literature. The results of the study shows that lesbian pulp fiction is quite invisible in Swedish public libraries which is mainly seen as an effect of discursive practices that surround and influence the genre such as the societal and historical view of homosexuality but also the view on popular literature. Conclusions are that librarians are not making conscious exclusions of lesbian pulp fiction per se, they are if anything quite unaware of the genre’s existence, but that the practices that shape the field of public libraries has contributed to the genre’s position. The study is a two years master’s thesis in Library and Information Science written at Uppsala university.

University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities / Department of Communication

Thesis (MPhil (General Linguistics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2008. / This thesis has been written as a research project within a programme that topicalises intercultural communication in fairly broad terms. It provides an analysis of the different constructions in the media of events and people by journalists from different linguistic communities who have regular intercultural contact in the course of reporting on local newsworthy events. The communities here are different media producers, different news publishing institutions who print and circulate current news to audiences in different language communities. Illustratively, attention will go to the particular role players in the media, i.e. news producers (journalists, newspapers, publishing groups), newsmakers (people whose actions are observed and topicalised in the media) and news consumers (the audience, readership) engaged in reporting on a particular, prominently mediated event in 1986, and again in 1996. The event that is now recorded as the Guguletu Seven incident is investigated for the way in which it can highlight cultural linguistic differences in mediating the same event.