Linguistics/Discourse Analysis
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| Linguistics |
| 00. Introduction |
|---|
| Theoretical Linguistics |
| 01. Phonetics • 02. Phonology • 03. Morphology • 04. Syntax • 05. Semantics • 06. Pragmatics • 07. Discourse Analysis |
| Language as Signs |
| 08. Semiotics • 09. Sign Language • 10. Orthography |
| Language and the Human Mind |
| 11. Psycholinguistics • 12. Neurolinguistics • 13. Language Acquisition • 14. Evolutionary Linguistics |
| The Diversity of Language |
| 15. Typology • 16. Historical Linguistics • 17. Dialectology and Creoles • 18. Sociolinguistics • 18. Anthropological Linguistics |
| Appendices |
| Glossary • IPA Chart • Further reading • Bibliography • License |
Pragmatics adds the importance of context to the study of language. Discourse analysis takes things further, studying communication, such as dialogue or written texts.
Coherence vs. Cohesion[edit | edit source]
In linguistics, we differentiate between coherence and cohesion. Cohesion is the use of linguistic means to 'tie' material together. Examples of cohesive devices includeː
- The use of connectives (but, if, however)
- The use of anaphora and definite expressions to refer to previously mentioned concepts (the man, it)
- The correct use of tenses and moods (He had done this before, but this time, the situation was different).
But a cohesive text is not necessarily coherent:
- Firstly, red apples are red. Secondly, such apples are very tasty. Moreover, tastiness is quite subjective. Subjectivity affects our perception of apples.
This is a very cohesive text, but not coherent in the least. Coherence is more than linguistic: It requires extralinguistic knowledge to judge whether a piece of discourse 'makes sense'. By contrast, a text can be coherent yet not cohesive. In the next section, we will see some of these situations, when we deal with the flouting of maxims.