Summary on discourse
Topic: Discourse
by Zareen, 2018 Cohort
Note: This entry was created in 2018, when the task was to “summarise a key reading”, and so may not represent a good example to model current primer entries on.
Discourse#
Based on the required reading: Mark Olssen, Discourse, Complexity, Normativity: Tracing the elaboration of Foucaults materialist concept of discourse (2014)
Introduction#
Discourses are particular to fields or disciplines, such as economics, law, medicine, literature, and so on. The most influential thinker on this concept of discourse and the basis for this primer is Michel Foucault, whose work is explained extensively in the Olssen reading.
What is discourse?#
Discourse in a discipline is made up of statements that are used to communicate in a field. Statements can be the written and spoken words used in a field. They can also be the attitudes and practices in that field, such as the acceptable way of collecting data or the appropriate use of language and tone in communicating.
The entirety of the discourse in a discipline is constructed using the available statements, and truths are generated depending on those statements. If a communication does not use the available statements it will be considered invalid. For example, if an economist fails to make an argument using the appropriate kind of data, the argument will be regarded as invalid by others in the economics discipline.
Discourse impacts society#
The available statements in a discourse can include various conflicting positions. For example, economics discourse contains arguments for and against capitalism. However, it is important to note that different opinions in a discourse are also governed by statements that dictate what all the possible valid arguments are, and how those arguments can be made.
For example, if legal discourse defines same-sex sexual acts as sodomy, it will have impact on the legislation that is created about those acts. There will be arguments about what that legislation should say, but all actors in the discourse have an understanding that sodomy is a one-off act. On the other hand, if legal discourse defines same-sex sexual acts as homosexuality, again there may be arguments about how to legislate this, but there is an underlying agreement that homosexuality is part of a persons identity.
This example demonstrates how discourse can have implications for society as whole, and this is expanded upon in the next section.
Knowledge/Power#
Discourse often takes place in institutional hierarchies. For example, medical discourse is controlled by doctors because they know the appropriate language, data, definitions and practices that can be used to communicate, unlike an outsider trying to raise an argument in this field. The doctors status and training therefore gives them power to construct the discourse in the medical discipline.
Therefore the generation of truth and knowledge is controlled by those with power. This creates dominant views that are then perpetuated in society, and this can have tangible effects on society, such as the creation of legislation reflecting dominant views.
Conclusion: Unravelling complexity#
Discourse analysis involves looking at the statements in a discourse to explain how truth in a field develops and changes over time. It can therefore be a useful tool in understanding complex problems for example, climate change that depend heavily on how truths in that area are generated, communicated and reflected in social relations.
Most importantly, however, I believe that discourse as it has been described above reveals the limitations of single disciplines in generating truth, and while analysing discourse allows an understanding of complex problems, it highlights the need for interdisciplinarity that this course has often explored to solve complex problems.
Disclaimer#
This content has been contributed by a student as part of a learning activity.
If there are inaccuracies, or opportunities for significant improvement on this topic, feedback is welcome on how to improve the resource.
You can improve articles on this topic as a student in "Unravelling Complexity", or by including the amendments in an email to: Chris.Browne@anu.edu.au