Chapter 0

Further Reading

Further reading for Introduction

  1. Ulrich Beck's Risk Society is a socio-political account of the critical state of modern German and European society and culture. Besides locating the crises of the environment, the family and the status of science and technology within political and economic theory, he takes a remarkably positive attitude to the political awareness and participation which these crises have brought about.

    • Beck, U. (1992). Risk Society: Towards a New Modernity. London: Sage.

  2. From a purely analytical viewpoint, one of the best overviews and introductions to CDA is Paul Simpson and Andrea Mayr's Language and Power: A Resource Book for Students. Ron Scollon's Analyzing Public Discourse shares with our book the attempt to use critical discourse analysis (CDA) insights for action, rather than simply for analysis. It is a more concentrated attempt to use CDA to impact on society, in particular public policy, i.e. public consultative discourse analysis

    • Scollon, R. (2008). Analyzing Public Discourse: Discourse Analysis in the Making of Public Policy. London: Routledge.
    • Simpson, P. and Mayr, A. (2009). Language and Power: A Resource Book for Students. London and New York: Routledge.

  3. In many ways this present book takes the same perspective on discourse as Norman Fairclough’s Language and Power and derives from it the underlying theoretical linguistic framework. However, that is a more advanced textbook without any emphasis on the writing of texts. For the reader whose appetite has been whetted by the present book, it would be excellent follow-up reading at a more challenging level.

    • Fairclough, N. (2001). Language and Power (2nd edn). Harlow: Longman.

  4. Fairclough is himself very dependent on Michael Halliday’s Introduction to Functional Grammar, which is the inspiration and source of most of the grammatical theory of Part A.

    • Halliday, M.A.K. and Matthiessen, C. (2004). An Introduction to Functional Grammar (3rd edn). London: Hodder.

  5. There are various derivatives of functional grammar designed for students at different levels. Suzanne Eggins’ An Introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics is clear and comprehensive, and explains and uses the notion of system: a framework for modelling linguistic choices, a concept which underlies Halliday’s Grammar but to which he makes no explicit reference. An equally accessible, but no less comprehensive, textbook is Angela Downing and Philip Locke’s A University Course in English Grammar. One advantage of this textbook is that, although Hallidayan in spirit, it preserves much of the traditional terminology of grammatical analysis. It also includes many interesting texts. The easiest introduction is David Butt et al.’s Using Functional Grammar: An Explorer’s Guide, designed specifically for teachers using Hallidayan grammar in the classroom.

    • Butt, D. and National Centre for English Language Teaching and Research (Australia). (2000). Using Functional Grammar: An Explorer’s Guide (2nd edn). Sydney, NSW: National Centre for English Language Teaching and Research.
    • Downing, A. and Locke, P. (2006). English Grammar: A University Course (2nd edn). London: Routledge.
    • Eggins, S. (2004). An Introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics (2nd edn). New York and London: Continuum.

    We will refer to specific parts of these grammar books (4–5) in the further reading sections of Chapters 1 to 3.

  6. Kress and Van Leeuwen’s seminal work on a comprehensive account of the grammar of visual design draws on a variety of examples to examine how images convey meaning.

    • Kress, G. and Van Leeuwen, T. (2006). Reading Images: The Grammar of Visual Design (2nd edn). New York and London: Routledge.

  7. Information regarding the use of electronic portfolios can be found on the popular and free ePortfolio platform www.foliospaces.org. The special issue of the Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology also provides interesting articles on the use of electronic portfolios for academic purposes. Of particular interest is Hiradhar and Gray’s article on the implementation and integration of electronic portfolios into language-related courses.