Discourse, Discourse Analysis and Gender

Abstract

This chapter discusses the two key concepts of the book: discourse and gender. This is not an easy task, partly because different approaches theorize these concepts, and the relationship between them, differently; partly because of the rapid development in and increasing sophistication of these fields. Because I find it difficult to talk about gender without talking about discourse, I start by looking at discourse and discourse analysis, move on to gender, then look at these together (‘Gender and discourse/Gendered discourse/Gendering discourse’). I conclude the chapter by looking briefly at four other concepts: construction and performance, representation and indexing. Relevant to the study of gender and discourse, these are used in and outside this book, and will hopefully be useful analytical concepts for those embarking on their own analyses of gendered discourses.