Critical Discourse Analysis

Critical discourse analysis represents a variety of theories, methodologies, and definitions. Encompassing the theoretical concepts of discourse theory and critical theory, as well as suggesting a method for uncovering the relationships among these various perspectives, critical discourse analysis (abbreviated as CDA in most contexts) is the study of texts, speech, and visual images to uncover the shared meanings that contribute to, or represent, social structures and ideologies. CDA is distinguished from discourse analysis by its explicit political and social goals; it assumes that discourse structures constitute social inequality and injustice and seeks to expose those structures in both the production and reception of written, spoken, and/or visual messages. CDA is concerned with studying and analyzing how power relations, inequality, and dominance are created and perpetuated through discourse within various political, social, and historical contexts. By unmasking the workings of such discourse practices, CDA scholars hope to subvert—or at least resist—those practices in the interests of social justice.

CDA does not provide one single or specific theory or research methodology. Rather, various theories and research methods have influenced the development of CDA. Epistemological theories, social theories, sociopsychological theories, discourse theories, and linguistic theories, to name only a handful, can be found in CDA. In essence, CDA brings a variety of theories into play by focusing both on the micro aspects of discourse (e.g., words, sentences, and images) and the macro aspects of social structures (e.g., production and reception of texts within a broader order of discourse). On the micro level, CDA assumes that power manifests in the usage patterns of words and images and that individuals participate in these construction processes in their use of language. On the macro level, CDA assumes that our identities (subjectivities) are constructed in and through the ways we produce and consume discourses and that language constructs our social and cultural worlds. Within both contexts, CDA assumes that social, cultural, identity, and power structures are not fixed—that changes in language usage can and do change that which is constructed. This social change is the goal of CDA.

The key terms of CDA are discourse and critical. In most usage related to CDA, discourse is distinguished from texts, which are specific utterances, images, or writings. Discourse is an overall form of knowledge and an arena that delimits certain expression. According to Michel Foucault, whose work influenced the development of CDA, the use of language and words is regulated through discursive formations—conventions and rules that constrain our knowledge and the meanings of things. Discourse, then, is the arena in which social relations, practices, and behaviors are constructed and maintained.

Concerns regarding the manifestation of power and the workings of ideology characterize the critical aspect of CDA. These concerns can be traced to the work of Marxists and the influence of Frankfurt School scholars who argued that certain ideologies are conveyed through textual and cultural forms. Ideology is an important concept in CDA because it is through ideology that power and inequality are maintained. Textual production and reception are social processes. The meanings [Page 221]of texts are often encoded by those in power, although the meanings and effects of language are also products of negotiation between producers, consumers, and the broader social/cultural context. Texts, then, can be open to contestation as various individuals and groups—producers and receivers—struggle over meanings and effects. The role of ideology, however, is to naturalize dominant structures so that the processes of meaning making and social construction are obscured. CDA aims to make these processes visible by asking whether texts serve powerful interests or structures of domination, by evaluating whether one representation or identity is selected or constructed in particular ways, and by asking who produces the representations and what their motivations might be.

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