Duration
30h Th
Number of credits
Lecturer
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the second semester
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
The course considers how methods and concepts of discourse analysis can be used as resources in political science.
Interdisciplinary par excellence, the notion of discourse has long been an object of attention for various types of research at the crossroads of human and social sciences (linguistics, cognitive sciences, sociology, psychology, political science). By making aware of the discursive dimension of political facts, the course aims to provide the sudents with a 'toolbox' for describing complex issues, using linguistic resources mobilised by actors.
Students will be confronted to a plurality of methods of analysis and interpretation, applied to political discourse (see below, "Planned learning activities").
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
The objective of the course is twofold:
- reinforce the students' ability to analyse power issues, through the systematic and rigorous interpretation of speech forms considered as revelatory of social and political structures and representations.
- encourage the students to adopt a reflexive attitude towards their own use of discourse as well as their methods of investigating and producing data.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
Students are expected to have a passive command of English, which will be the language of some of the texts composing the reading portfolio.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
The course combines three types of learning activities:
- Introductory theoretical lectures about key concepts in discourse analysis : performativity ; implicit (presuppositions and presumptions) ; collocations, formulas and political cant.
- Key readings (papers, book sections) in the field of discourse analysis (applied to political phenomena), prepared by the students in subgroups, then discussed in the classroom (conceptual metaphors ; argumentation ; social discourse ; Critical Discourse Analysis, etc.).
- Practical work (in subgroups): application to a case study chosen by the students (upon the teacher's approval).
- terrorist propaganda ;
- neoreactionary discourse ;
- storytelling and manipulative uses of the narrative ;
- totalitarian languages, newspeak and political cant
- discrimination through language and gender-neutral language issues
- metaphors in political discourse
- politics in a post-truth era.
Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning)
After a series of introductory lectures, the course will consist of interactive seminars and group work.
The course requires the students' regular attendance and active participation.
Recommended or required readings
The course will be partly based on a reading portfolio (papers, book sections) in English and in French.
Assessment methods and criteria
The evaluation is based on:
- the students' active participation and discussion in class
- the practical group work done by the students (oral presentation and written synthesis).
Regular and active attendance to the seminar is thus mandatory.
Work placement(s)
Organizational remarks
The course is held only every uneven year (2019-2020, 2021-2022, etc.).
It will thus be held in 2019-2020.
Contacts
Frédéric Claisse
fclaisse@uliege.be
Adaptation of teaching commitments following the COVID-19 pandemic for the May-June 2020 session
Teaching methods implemented : distance-learning
All the introductory theoretical lectures were given before lockdown, except for one lecture which could be podcasted (before May 5, if applicable).
Each group will be supported in the carrying out of their work, through a series of virtual sessions with the teacher.
Each group received instructions and bibliographical references for their work before lockdown.
Assessment subjects
The evaluation will be based on the students' group work.
Assessment methods
The evaluation will be based on :
1) Written output produced by the students in subgroups (70%)
- written synthesis of the work (15 to 20 pages)
- commented slides (Powerpoint) of the imagined presentation for the group work
2) interactions (questions and answers) with the other groups, in response to the written syntheses and slides (30%)
Failure to participate in group work will result in an additional personal work as well as a (remote) oral examination, based on the whole set of written syntheses.