LANGUAGE ANALYSIS

MS MURR
READ
 PREPARATION TIPS FOR LANGUAGE
ANALYSIS
• Practice essays less important than reading and analysing

• READ THE PAPER/BLOGS

• LISTEN TO THE RADIO – talkback radio is gold

• WATCH MEDIA WATCH/Q & A – politicians and persuasive

language

• Pick up on the language techniques used in speech as well as

what’s written
THIS WILL HELP YOU TO BE PREPARED FOR
ANYTHING ON THE END OF YEAR EXAM

• Web site

• Blog

• Advertising campaign

• Opinion Piece/Editorial

• Letters to the editor

• May require comparative skills

GETTING THE TERMINOLOGY RIGHT

• Brush up on the definitions of persuasive techniques.

• For example: the difference between simile and metaphor

• Going over the language strategies section of the Using

Language to Persuade text book is ideal for this. Make palm
cards, commit definitions and possible purposes and impact
to memory.
 DO NOT

• Approach the language as though you are ‘shopping’ for

persuasive technique

• List techniques

• Paraphrase the entire article

• Give an opinion on the issue

 DO NOT

• “The writer persuades”….. Does he/she? Really??

DO NOT BORE ME, OR THE ASSESSOR,
WITH THE WORD ‘PERSUADE’
SO MANY PHRASES TO CHOOSE FROM!
THE WRITER…..
• Advances the argument that
• Asserts that
• Claims that
• Contends that
• Maintains that
• Pleads the case for
• Points out that
• Puts forward the view that
• Rejects the view that
 AND SOME MORE….

• Submits that
• Urges the reader to
• Concentrates on
• Condemns
• Confronts
• Denigrates
• Appeals to
• Makes the point that
• ……..and so many more
SO MANY WORDS FOR PERSUADE!!!
MORE WORDS FOR PERSUADE
I’M NOT JOKING….MORE WORDS FOR
PERSUADE….
 TONE

• Integral in language analysis

• Make sure you start to build your own word bank for the
various tones that are used in persuasive writing.

• Identifying tone as ‘angry’ is easy. Be more precise, and

specific in the words that you use.

• ‘irritated’, ‘vexed’, ‘passionate’, ‘furious’, ‘disgruntled’,

‘outraged, ‘irate’ and the list goes on….
 MAKE SURE YOU’RE DOING IT THE
RIGHT WAY
• Be precise

• Learn definitions

• Practise

• Use in context
 PRACTISE!!!!!!!!!

• Work your way through the practice essays and get your
annotation method clear.

• Annotate each article with your own code

• Be strategic – there are a few different ways of doing this.

• Grouping your annotations according to the arguments,

techniques, tone and appeals that come through in the article
is the one way.
 CHECKLIST FOR INTRODUCTIONS TO
LANGUAGE ANALYSIS - TICAS
• Tone – how the writer would sound if you heard them reading
• Issue – can be summarised from the background information box
• Contention – you MUST get a grip on the writer’s
contention/main argument if you are to analyse how he/she aims
to position the audience
• Audience – this will depend on the style of the article/publication
as well as the issue
• Style – what type of publication is it?

• TICAS is an acronym that covers everything in your introduction

REMINDER: IT’S NOT ENOUGH JUST TO
IDENTIFY THE TECHNIQUE
• You must go beyond pure technique identification
DON’T BE ONE DIMENSIONAL OR
WRITE ABOUT WHAT IS OBVIOUS

• Go beyond a ‘one circle’

approach

• For eg: “The writer uses

a donut simile to
persuade the reader.”
WRITING LANGUAGE ANALYSIS IS LIKE
COUNTING THE CIRCLES IN A DONUT
• The writer uses the donut simile to
contextualise the complexity of the
process of language analysis for the
reader. By comparing the layers of a
language analysis essay to the circles
that can be found in a donut, the
notion that there is more to a piece of
writing than technique alone
becomes apparent. She makes it
clear that as readers we need to move
beyond an approach that is one
dimensional and write in depth
analysis, essentially making four
circkes out of one. She maximises
the impact of her point with the lure
of a donut.
 WHAT? HOW? WHY?

Everything in your analysis should be doing one of the following

things:

1. What is the argument/technique?

2. How does it work? How is the audience positioned?

3. Why is it helpful in supporting in the writer’s overall contention?

A‘fourth circle’ approach really teases out the reasons for the writer
adopting the line of argument/technique… it goes beyond the simple
What, How, Why…..
 VISUAL LANGUAGE NEEDS
INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS TOO
• This could be
• A photo

• A graph

• A cartoon

• IT COULD BE ANYTHING