Discourse analysis and vocabulary

Discourse analysis and vocabulary

1. Lexis in talk and textual aspects of lexical competence

   • Lexis
     • Is part of the vocabulary that we have. It is used in written and spoken language
       • Reiterate own words
       • Take up another’s vocabulary
       • Develop and expand topics.
       • This process is called relexicalization
   • Vocabulary patterns
     • The learners need to have a fairly rich vocabulary, and to know synonyms, antonyms, etc. of the words that are “in play”
   • Lexical relations
     • Rearranges conventional and established words and we have to change our usual conceptualisation of how words relate to each other.

2. Lexical Cohesion

   • The way related words are chosen to link elements of a text
     • Collocation
       • Only refers to the probability that lexical items will co-occur and is not a semantic relation between words.
     • Reiteration
       • Restating and item in a later part of the discourse by direct repetition

3. Vocabulary and the organising of text

   • Open system
     • Belong to the major word classes of noun, verb, adjective, and verb,
   • Closed system
     • The words which carry a grammatical meaning (this, that, these, those)
       • Demostrative
   • Structure of an argument
     • Issue
       • Main problem of the text
     • Assessment
       • A part that is something being judge
     • Solution
       • Possible solution

4. Signalling Larger Textual Patterns

   • Signalling
     • To show that something is happening or will happen (kind of prediction). And it functions to increase our awareness in realising the pattern (able to recognize the kind of texy).
       • Problem-solution pattern
         • to show how organising words have been used to “wrap round” along problem-solution text.
       • Claim-counterclaim pattern (hypothetical pattern):
         • Refers to the structure of an argument where there is more than one side to debate.
       • Doubt or uncertainty Pattern
         • Want to indicate doubts of uncertainty.
     • Exploited as
       • Top-down phenomenom (uses background to predict)
       • bottom-up phenomenom (all the way around)

5. Register and Signalling vocabulary

   • Register
     • The way the speaker uses language differently in different circumstances. (word you choose, tone, body language).
       • Formal
       • Informal
   • Signalling
     • Organise and struct.
   • Idioms
     • Idiomatic phrases are used as signal of the response

6. Modality

   • Not only modal verbs can show modality, as well nouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs.
     • Classic
       • Concerned with degrees of certainty and possibility
     • The root modalities
       • volition, permission, obligation
     • The verbs and adverbs are more frequent than nouns and adjective.