Power In Discourse Includes Powerful Participants English Language Essay

Power In Discourse Includes Powerful Participants English Language Essay Introduction: Norman Fairclough, observes that there is a correlation between unequal power relations and the way language is used. In this essay, Im going to comment on language and power in analyzing discourse. Ill discuss different encounters that display power in discourse. Therefore, I categorize areas of constraints enacted through discourse and Provide examples of language indicators of power in the quoted discourse. Power in discourse includes powerful participants who control contributions of non-powerful participants. Constraints of speakers contributions have three types; Content: what is said or done. Relations: Social relations involved in discourse. Subjects: Subject positions which people can occupy. Ive chosen an encounter which displays power in discourse as a conversation between members of a family about buying a new house in Kuwait; 1.Husband: I think about buying a new house.Thus,I d like to ask about your opinions. 2.Wife: A good idea but you should think about which are and location rather than size of the housev or number of rooms. 3.Husband: Which area do you prefer? 4.Wife: internal areas such as Shweikh or Abdallah AL-Salm. 5.Husband:(angrily)Are you crazy?Dont you know that the house costs one million dinar in this area but we have got only one hundred fortyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ 6.Wife: What about other areas such as AL-Rawda,AL Sora,AL-Odyleyaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. 7.Husband:I told you that we dont have price of one house in these areas as the smallest one costs about one hundred seventy but we need a large house containg three rooms at least. 9.Sarah:(the oldest daughter) I need a private room as Im a university student and cant study with my little daughters.Thus,we need gour rooms at least. 10.Ahmed(the oldest son): I also need a private room. 11.Abdallah and Abdalaziz(twins):we alsop need a private room and dont like to change our school where we have all our friends.What about buying in this area? 12.Wife:(angirly) you will go to a better school and make new friendships. 13.Husband:What s your opinion,my parents? 14.Grandfather: what can I say as you decided to desert us? 15.Father:No,father,you will come with us. 16.Grandfather: I wont leave my house. 17.Grandmother: I wont leave my house.how vabout staying with us as the house is very large. 18.Wife: What about selling your house inorder to be able to buy a large house in luxurious areasà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. 19.Husband: I dont admit that as it is unfair to my brothers so Ill buy a house at our expenses only. 20.Ahmed:Dewanya is the most important place inh the house where all men meet,isnt it? 21.Father:Yes,it is very important. 22.Wife:(angirly)Where willyou build a house? 23.Husband: May be,in Said Al-Abdalah 24.Wife:(exclaiming),in Al-jahra.Ive never visited it.What can I say to all friends and relatives. 25.Husband: It have decided to do that. 26.Grandfather: You can stay with us after we reconstructed our house as we cant live without you. 27.Grandmother:It is good.Then,you can stay here , wont change your schools and have your private rooms. 28.Wife:It is agood idea.Then,we can do business to get more money and buy the house which we like,cant we? 29.Daughters and Sons:It is great father,we will stay with gramndparents and wont change our school. 30.Husband: Ill think about this idea. Father, as a power holder, exercises control over contributions of all family members in conversation as follows; In the opening turn,father,as a power holder in the house, announced to other members of the family what he is thinking about and identify their contributions in this subject Id like to ask about your opinions..In turn(1)He told them that he needs to know their opinions about buying a new house so he allows them indirectly to start talking and participate in such a conversation. Again in turn(13),father practices control of power over discourse when he asks his parents to tell their opinions What s your opinion,my parents?.However,he gives equal instructions to all participants to tell their opinions explicitly about buying a new house but when he notices that grandparents are silent, he asserts his desire to know their own opinions in turn(13).Father evaluated a lot of contribution from other members of the family in turns(21) explicitly when he asserted the importance of Dewanya Yes, its very important as his son suggested and in turn (30) implicitly when he decided to think about this idea. Father used positive evaluations in order to encourage other participants to continue their contributions in conversation. These are considered as arrogant if father address equal partners or more powerful ones. Wife made series of questions in turns(6),(18),and (22) which indicates that wife fails to master power in discourse. This is an appropriate tactic to maintain a lot of control on conversation as he asks most questions which all members of the family answer and express their disagreement on some suggestions or ideas concerning a new house. Family members answers show that they adhere to rights of conversation.However,some people cant imagine that father as a power holder can be asked and answer questions in turns(7),(15) and (19).Thats because father provides some space to other members of the family to make conversation continue on longer term. Obligations of family members to contribute in conversation are emphasized in turns (14),(23) and (26) by a pause(marked by a space dot) where there is a brief silence in which all eyes are on this participant who are responsible to tell his opinion. In turn(5),father uses a negative question Dont you know that the house costs one million dinar in this area but we have got only one hundred fortyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦which may be dependent on intonation or other circumstances of discourse. This question as if father suggested something before and wife contrasts this suggestion so his negative question makes his wife to look silly.Finally,in turns(25) and (30),father uses short sentences which seems to be hardly spoken as if he would like to end conversation as a power holder because he reaches his final decision concerning buying a new house or not. Question tags are used in (20)isnt it? and (28)cant we? which refers to the speakers suggestion but others may seem to disagree these suggestions. Question tags are used depending on intonation and other factors which affect conversation stream. Interruptions and overlaps occur in turns (6),(7) and (14) as constraints on content, relations and subjects arent well adopted. Wife and husband interrupted each others in these turns as if father fails to master power in discourse. Relations and subjects of the conversation are closely related as all these interruptions occur in the conversation. We have all types of constraints in this example. Concerning content, family members are required to tell their opinions about buying a new house. Relations are social between father and other family members. Subject positions include an aspirant father and other members of the family including grandparents. These constraints lead to particular forms of language. All constraints on discourse, whether content, subject or relation, dont appear to have direct control of power in discourse on other family members who participate in this conversation. When we examine conversation continum,we notice that father is the only responsible for giving all directive acts of speech particularly questions to other members of the family who are obliged to answer or at least give their opinions to father as a power holder over discourse. Family members play the role of fathers subordinate who must contribute by their views about topic of discussion which is buying a new house. Father doesnt control the discourse directly but family members are already constrained by conventions of discourse type which is previously identified. Although, father is a power holder who determines which discourse can be admitted, other powerful participants, such as a wife, can produce directive speech acts particularly making questions as what occurs in turns (6),(18) and (22) so wife as a powerful participant can indirectly constrain the participants by selecting the discourse type. The most important constraint is self-constraint as all participants adhere to conventions of discourse whether powerful or non powerful participants.However,father as the most powerful participant manages to master discourse very skillfully and provides space for other non-powerful participants to make their contributions or even interruptions in different degrees and distances. In turn(6),wife interrupts father not because she would like to do all the talking or control discourse but because she would like to relieve fathers anger from her previous contribution in conversation.However,in turn (7),father interrupts wife in order to control her co ntribution in the conversation as a power holder who has the right to practice power in discourse over other family members particularly his wife who should give correct participation as he expects. Power in discourse or behind discourse isnt always attributed to a particular person or social groupings. On the other hand, power may be lost or won in the discourse according to social struggle.People,who dont hold power usually look forward to gaining sources of power. This applied to0 the speakers at different levels whether situational, social or institutional. Let us begin with a text where struggle is clear in an interview between a student(S) who is accused of making trouble at school and a teacher(T); 1.T: Why didnt you leave school at 2 p.m? 2.S: I didnt use to leave school immediately at 2.p.m. 3.T: Why is that? 4.S: That is clear, isnt it?I,m waiting for may classmates to go together. 5.T: Well. There arent any students at school at that time, are there? 6.S: No, none of students are there at that time, are they? what about .students who were collecting there? 7.T: That was last year.However,Iamnt convinced that you are innocent as you said.Hence,did you go to the court instead of going straight home? 8.S: I thought that my classmates might come to the court.Anyway,we usually meet at the court. In this conversation, the teacher exercises control over students contributions. They both adhere to rights and obligations of discourse which readers or listeners can expect in such an interview.However,I dont expect that a student asks a question and a teacher answers. Audience may expect that teacher exercises more control over discourse than all people expect. He tends to exceed his discourse rights and doesnt adhere to his obligations.Firstly,the student challenges teachers questions in two occasions(turn 2 and 4),instead of answering teachers questions directly.However,the student provides an answer to a question implicitly in (2) and introduced it after he challenges the teachers question in (4).In addition in (6),the student asks a question which the teacher answers as all listeners or readers dont expect. On the other hand, a student gives an answer in turns (6) and (8) which is irrelevant to what the teacher wants to know.However,all expect that the teacher can force the st udent to requirement of an interview or which should have a relatively formal setting but he deals with a teacher as a peer. It is evident in a students vocabulraystudents,collecting,the court,meet.Audience thinks that a student who uses these vocabulary Must be influenced by the interviews setting,occasion,power and distance which separates him from the teacher. The teacher maintains a lot of control on an interview as he asks most questions which the student answers fairly with some complaint. The students answers indicate some adherence to rights and obligations of conversation., The teacher, as a power holder, yields some ground to the student in order to pursue a strategy of a long term. This may be an interpretation of the teachers failure to immediate challenge to the students questions but he answers them and let his challenge pass as he accepts it. This example shows how a social struggle of power between a student who shows that he isnt affected by school authority as he challenges conventional constraints of discourse in such situations. There are three levels of social organisation;situational,institutional and societal. We have described what is going on a situational level.However,we havent a adopted a social pattern to which a student belongs to the same class of society as all young people so the teacher uses appropriate tactics which are standard for dealing with all individuals of his class. At institutional level, law and the family are similar institutions which shows the same struggle between young people as a social struggle at an institutional level as the school can be considered as a social institution. Power in discourse or behind discourse isnt always attributed to a particular person or social groupings. On the other hand, power may be lost or won in the discourse according to social struggle.People,who dont hold power usually look forward to gaining sources of power. This applied to0 the speakers at different levels whether situational, social or institutional. Conclusion: In conclusion, some speakers have power in discourse as they exercise control on other participants of discourse. discourse is seen as a place where speakers exercise relations of power. On the other hand, power behind discourse is related to how relations of power constitute discourse order in society. Power cant be held by definite persons for ever but it is won and lost through social struggle. In my opinion, there is continuous inequalities between people, there is always power in discourse, power behind discourse and social struggle in discourse.

Creating Peace Through Non Violence

In Martin Luther King Junior’s essay â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail† and Aung San Suu Kyi’s essay â€Å"Freedom from Fear†, they discuss the importance of non-violent action in order to end political conflicts. In the speech â€Å"A Just and Lasting Peace† Barack Obama explains the effects of war and the ways in which non-violence can create a just and lasting peace. According to King, in order to create opportunities for negotiating about unjust laws, non-violent action may be necessary. Violence is never the long term solution to any problem.This is why non-violent action is so powerful. Suu Kyi discusses why society must be able to liberate their minds from apathy and fear in order to overcome a corrupt government. Fear causes corruption in government and corruption in society. In order to restore a corrupt government and society, the citizens must find courage, because courage is the only way to overcome corruption. According to Barack Obama, in order to create a just and lasting peace we must find alternatives to violence. War promises human tragedy. In most cases the cost of war outweighs the benefits.Non-violent direct action, freedom from fear, and alternatives to violence will fix corrupt governments and will create lasting peace by forcing a national awareness of injustices; without political pressure there cannot be a lasting peace. Non-violent direct action will create opportunities for negotiating unjust laws. During the civil rights movement, racial discrimination impacted the lives of many African Americans. Racial segregation laws became the main target for civil rights activists like Martin Luther King, Jr.According to King, â€Å"in any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: (1) collection of the facts to determine whether injustices are alive; (2) negotiation; (3) self-purification; and (4) direct action† (King 576). In the first step you must be able to identify an issue which requires no n-violent action. After you identify an issue you must negotiate with a political leader in order to solve this problem. If this does not create a solution to the problem direct action may be necessary.The purpose of non-violent direct action is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will open the door to negotiation. King believes that violence will only prolong the issues in society and the only effective way to create lasting change is to pressure political leaders through non-violent action. According to King, there are two types of laws: a just law and an unjust law. â€Å"An unjust law is a code that a majority inflicts on a minority that is not binding on itself. A just law is a code that a majority compels a minority to follow that it is willing to follow itself† (King 580).Unjust laws create corruption among societies. In order to overcome these unjust laws one must be willing to break them. By disobeying unjust laws, and accepting the penalties which come wi th it, in reality you are â€Å"expressing the very highest respect for law† (King 580). This act of civil disobedience will put significant pressure on politics in order to force a change. Many peaceful protests were used in order to bring awareness to level of police brutality during the civil rights movement.After witnessing countless African Americans being attacked by malicious police officers while peacefully protesting, a national awareness pressured segregation laws out of existence. In order to build a civilized society which provides basic human rights, citizens must be fearless of their government. According to Aung San Suu Kyi, there are four kinds of corruption: â€Å"corruption induced by desire†, â€Å"revenge†, â€Å"ignorance†, and â€Å"fear† (Suu Kyi 682). Fear, unlike the rest, is the root of all evil. Power doesn’t lead to corruption, fear does.The fear of â€Å"losing power corrupts those who wield it and fear of the s courge of power corrupts those who are subject to it† (Suu Kyi 682). In order to overcome fear in a corrupt government, each and everyone must make sacrifices in order to possess courage. In a society where fear is an integral part of everyday existence, it is not easy to remain uncorrupt. It is the obligation of the people to stay strong and uphold principles of justice. Without fear one can overcome any obstacle, but the second fear returns it is difficult to reach your goals.In order for these ordinary people to create a society which promotes â€Å"the basic rights and freedoms to which all human beings are entitled†, they must discover that â€Å"freedom from fear stands out as both a means and an end† (Suu Kyi 684). When a society is able to stand together and liberate their minds from apathy and fear, they will truly achieve freedom. They will have the courage to challenge their corrupt government and create a government where the people possess the power. The non-violent way of overcoming a corrupt government is to overcome fear.In a world filled with war, genocide, and dangerous weapons, we must explore alternatives to violence which will help create just and lasting peace. According to Barack Obama â€Å"there is nothing weak—nothing passive—nothing naive—in the creed and lives of Gandhi and King† (Obama 644). Despite this, Obama believes that war has a role in preserving the peace, but in no way is it the solution to all problems. No matter how justified, war promises human tragedy. Innocent citizens will die along with foreign and U. S soldiers.Wars between nations will give way to wars within nations. Looking back at the past we can see completely different views on war. For most of history â€Å"the capacity of human beings to think up new ways to kill one another proved inexhaustible† (Obama 643). The views on war have significantly evolved over the years due to many evolutionary changes inc luding the addition of the Marshal Plan and the United Nations. Both of these additions have prevented a third world war. By restricting the use of war and weapons, the U. S has improved the balance between peace and violence.According to Obama, there are three ways that we can build a just and lasting peace. We must develop â€Å"alternatives to violence†, â€Å"human rights†, and â€Å"economic security† (Obama 648). Alternatives to violence will help the United States build peaceful relationships between foreign countries which will prevent future wars. Human rights are essential for maintaining a peace among the U. S citizens. Economic security will improve the standard of living in the United States and it will unite the peoples trust in the government. By achieving these goals, the U.S can achieve a non-violent means to a lasting peace. Non-violent direct action, freedom from fear, and alternatives to violence are key solutions to overcoming a corrupt gove rnment and creating lasting peace. Non-violent direct action may seem like an ineffective way to solve problems in a corrupt government, but according to Martin Luther King, Jr. , it is the only way to fix a corrupt government. Non-violent direct action was a key tactic used during the civil rights movement which ended racial segregation in America. Martin Luther King, Jr. nd other civil rights activists demonstrated non-violent sit-ins and protests which pressured political leaders into negotiating deals which would limit segregation laws. By doing this, the U. S people were able to see the level of police brutality during the civil rights movement. The U. S citizens were able to see how segregation was morally wrong. Non-violent direct action was an effective method used to end racial segregation. Freedom from fear is what Aung San Suu Kyi describes as being a key method to fix a corrupt government. Any society which is controlled by fear often possesses some level of corruption w ithin its government.In order to overcome a corrupt government, you must liberate your minds of apathy and fear. When a whole society is able to come together and build a sense of courage among the people, that society will have what is needed to overcome a corrupt government. Barack Obama describes the importance of finding alternatives to violence. In order to create a lasting peace, you must first have peace. As a nation, the United States is striving towards peace whether it’s on foreign or domestic land. Many wars have been fought in order to create peace, but as long as there is war there will never be lasting peace.The solution to this problem is complex, but it starts with us finding alternatives to violence. War will not solve any issues. It simply prolongs and complicates foreign conflicts. When the U. S government creates peace treaties instead of wars, then and only then will we see a glimpse of lasting peace. Works Cited King, Martin Luther, Jr. â€Å"Letter fro m Birmingham Jail. † Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. , 12 Apr. 1963. Print. Obama, Barack. â€Å"A Just and Lasting Peace. † The Nobel Foundation, n. d. Print. 2009. Suu Kyi, Aung San. â€Å"Freedom from Fear. † Micheal Aris, 1995. Print.

Racial Discrimination And African Americans - 1323 Words

Although racism has improved a lot since the 1600s, America still has some progress to make. Racial discrimination is the hatred of one person by another—or the belief that another person is less than human—because of skin color, language, customs, place of birth or any factor (adl.org). Americans try to overlook the inequalities of the world and pretend that racism does not exist anymore, only it very much does. Dating back to the 1600’s, African Americans were treated as less than human and not equal to whites. Up until 1865, blacks were enslaved by white families. They were beaten if they chose to not listen, treated inhumanely, and forced to work against their will with no payment or appreciation. Some whites would try to justify slavery by saying they would have no home or place to sleep if they were not â€Å"working† for them. The segregation at this time was just horrendous. There were â€Å"black only† and â€Å"white only† restrooms as well as â€Å"black only† and â€Å"white only† school systems. Of course the blacks restrooms were not near as nice or clean as the whites restrooms and the black schools were inferior to the white schools. One more prime example of the awful inequality is the segregated military. Blacks were considered â€Å"less capable† of performing military acts. If a black man or women actually made it in, it was only to segregated units that only did basic infantry training. They were not allowed to call any shots, drive or ride on any tanks or hum V s or fly any plane.Show MoreRelatedRacial Discrimination Against African Americans857 Words   |  4 Pageslegal organizations and communities that related to the racial discrimination issues in America (United States Department of Labor). 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In this new day and age, racial tendencies and prejudice has improved since the 1700-1800s,however, they are slowly going back to certain old w ays with voting laws and restaurants having the option to serve blacks or not. It all began with the start of slavery around 1619. The start of the New World, the settlers needed resources England and other countries had, whichRead MoreEssay On Police Brutality1478 Words   |  6 Pagesminority groups are being harassed and treated like hogs due to racial discrimination. In current day America racial discrimination is ongoing, which leads to police brutality. In â€Å"Why Are So Many Black Americans Killed By Police?†, Carl Bialik, reveals racism (consciously or not) leads to police brutality of African Americans. Kia Makarechi in â€Å"What The Data Really Says About Police and Racial Bias†, shows evidence of African Americans receiving more police brutality because of racism. Clint Smith

Former Cop Daniel Holtzclaw Sentenced to 263 Years

In January 2016, former Oklahoma City police officer Daniel Holtzclaw was sentenced to 263 years in prison for the rape and sexual assault of 13 black women in 2013 and 2014. State prosecutors argued that Holtzclaw should serve his sentence consecutively, making the case that each survivor deserved to have justice for the individual crimes. Holtzclaw made a career of assaulting Black women motorists during traffic stops and other instances and then scared them many of them into silence. His victims—many of whom were poor and had prior records—were too afraid to come forward. A jury found Holtzclaw guilty on 18 out of 36 criminal charges, including three counts of procuring lewd exhibition, four counts of forcible oral sodomy, five counts of first and second-degree rape, and six counts of sexual battery in December 2015. The jury recommended that Holtzclaw serve 263 years in prison. Three of Holtzclaw’s victims delivered impact statements at the January 2016 sentencing hearing—including his youngest victim who was just 17 years old at the time of her assault. She told the court about the great damage she experienced, revealing the her life â€Å"has been upside down.† How Hotlzclaw Chose His Victims At least thirteen women came forward to accuse Holtzclaw of sexual assault. Many of the women had not reported the assault for fear of reprisals or fear-later confirmed by the jurys failure to find Holtzclaw guilty on all 36 of the criminal charges brought against him-that they would not be believed. At a preliminary hearing in the case, the 17-year old survivor explained her reasoning, â€Å"Who are they going to believe? It’s my word against his. He’s a police officer.† This notion of â€Å"he said, she said† is a fairly common argument used to discount sexual assault survivors. And when the accused is a person in a position of power, such as a police officer, it can be even harder for survivors to get due process. It was this very circumstance that Daniel Holtzclaw was counting on. He picked out very specific targets: women who were poor, Black, and who, in several cases, had run-ins with the police because of drugs and sex work. Because of their backgrounds these women would not make credible witnesses against him. He could act with impunity and never have to face any consequences because his victims were already considered guilty in the eyes of the law and society. A similar case happened in Baltimore, where poor Black women were targets of sexual assault: â€Å"20 women who filed a lawsuit against the Housing Authority of Baltimore City are splitting a settlement worth almost $8 million. The lawsuit alleged that maintenance workers at various housing complexes had demanded sexual favors from the women in exchange for receiving badly needed repairs on their units.† Again, these maintenance workers, not unlike Daniel Hotlzclaw, banked on these women being both desperate and untrustworthy.   They believed that they could rape women and not be held accountable. Daniel Hotlzclaw was disabused of this power when he pulled over the wrong the woman, however.   Jannie Ligons, a 57-year-old grandmother, also survived an encounter with Holtzclaw. She was the first woman to come forward. Unlike many of the other victims, she had a support system: she was supported by her daughters and her community. She helped lead the charge that prompted 12 other victims to come forward and speak truth to power. Whats Next? Holtzclaw’s attorney said he plans to appeal. However, the judge has previously denied Holtzclaws request for a new trial or an evidentiary hearing. Holtzclaw is currently in jail serving his 263-year sentence. Convictions for police in sexual assault cases are rare and hefty sentences are even rarer. Nevertheless, sexual misconduct within the police force is fairly common. Here’s hoping that Holtzclaw’s case will not be exception but rather the signal for a new era where police are held accountable for sexual violence.