Language as a Tool of Social Construction and Representation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53983/ijmds.v15n03.005Keywords:
social construction, language, discourse, representation, critical discourse analysisAbstract
Language is much more than a neutral channel of information flow, it is an active, constitutive process that creates social realities, forms identities and continues or challenges systems of power. The theoretical data and empirical aspects of language as social construction/representation tool are reviewed in this research article. The article presents the theoretical background of the analysis of linguistic practices as a means of generating meaning, performing social differentiation, and naturalising the dominant ideological formations, drawing on the early works by Ferdinand de Saussure, Ludwig Wittgenstein, John L. Austin, Pierre Bourdieu, Michel Foucault and modern scholars of critical discourse analysis. The literature review combines the major theoretical frameworks, such as social constructionism, theory of the speech acts, critical discourse analysis, and systemic functional linguistics, as well as major empirical research on the topic of gender, race, and political discourse. The implications of the discussion to education, media, policy, and social justice advocacy are taken into account. The paper ends with the conclusion that the constructive power of language cannot be understood without being critically aware because, perhaps, it can also be transformed.
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