Themes in discourse research: The case of Diana

Introduction

This unit introduces some of the main themes and issues in discourse analysis. To do this, it looks at extracts from the late Princess Diana interview screened on Panorama in 1995. The interview not only broke the conventions for British Royal appearances, but also reshaped the usual boundaries between public and private for the Royal family. While the focus here may be on Diana's words, the unit is not in itself concerned with the Diana phenomenon. And while some of the points discourse analysis makes about the Panorama interview will explore her complex public representation, the unit is concerned mainly with what the interview tells us about talk in general, about the construction of identity, about language and how it works, and about the sources of the order and patterning in social interaction.

This material is from our archive and is an adapted extract from Discourse analysis (D843) which is no longer taught by The Open University. If you want to study formally with us, you may wish to explore other courses we offer in this subject area [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .