WHAT IS CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS?

Abstract

Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) has evolved over the past few decades, emerging as a dynamic and rapidly developing field within critical social theory. Given the diverse approaches and myriad of theories utilized in CDA practice, this paper aims to provide an overview of this interdisciplinary/transdisciplinary landscape. The method to conduct this study is meta-analysis, which hopefully can offer a detailed understanding of CDA’s multifaceted nature and its role in analyzing the dialectical interplay between language, power, and society where language/discourse is accorded a significant role. The paper begins with a brief review of the origins of CDA, grounding it in linguistics and social theories. It outlines the theoretical and philosophical foundations of CDA, examining key concepts such as “critical”, “power” and “ideology”. The paper surveys three main CDA approaches, examining their theoretical bases and highlighting the influence of poststructuralism on CDA work. The paper discusses some challenges that CDA has to address such as objectivity, trustworthiness, and the issue of explanation and interpretation. Additionally, it summarizes a scholarly assessment of CDA, and gives a sense of where CDA is moving forward.