Discourse dynamics of discriminatory practices in a job training situation.
Item
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Title
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Discourse dynamics of discriminatory practices in a job training situation.
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Identifier
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AAI9630504
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identifier
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9630504
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Creator
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Schwartz, Rosalie.
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Contributor
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Adviser: John Dore
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Date
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1996
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Language, Linguistics | Speech Communication | Women's Studies | Education, Adult and Continuing | Psychology, Industrial | Sociology, Industrial and Labor Relations
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Abstract
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I demonstrate the process-oriented and dialogical nature of discourse in a factory, where four men and one woman underwent on-the-job training as material handlers. I argue that the training for the woman differs from that of the men, involving practices to exclude her. In contrast to research which focuses on stable, conventional discourse patterns and genres, my analysis displays subtle and ambiguous messages.;Talk as process is the flow of possible linguistic options, where social agents take agreeing, opposing or equivocal positions regarding the woman trying for a non-traditional job. Gender, more than race and class, is the salient sociolinguistic category. Conflict occurs at the institutional level of union/management to start her on easy versus hard tasks. It is seemingly resolved by agreement to treat her like a man. The discourse, revolving around that theme, consists of hierarchic levels: ideology generates the register and discriminatory texts, and below that, dialogical processes.;Two kinds of talk are distinguished: a training register and "texts of discrimination." My model highlights general social processes such as legitimization, classification, and justification, which pertain to how the woman is treated. Traditional dialogical exchanges of form/transform, agree/disagree, order/execute, and question/answer demonstrate how exclusionary talk at different points in time are connected.;The training is characterized as spoken register with common features. Comparison of same-gender with the cross-gender pair reveals significant variations in style and power/solidarity features. There are instances where training texts and "texts of discrimination" merge. Metaphor, expressions of mockery, and genderized versions of the job are analyzed, along with intertextual use of a teaching register and sexist discourse. Findings include the existence of a logonomic system that directs agents to "read" messages as legitimate or discriminatory depending on positions regarding the woman. Two voices, "fairness" and "discrimination," are described, and a sociocultural dilemma of gender roles captured.;I use a social semiotic perspective, including approaches of Robert Hodge, Gunther Kress, M. A. K. Halliday, Ruqaiya Hasan, and Mikhail Bakhtin. The data I analyze are unique in providing concrete linguistic evidence of discriminatory practices and are the basis of a methodology I have developed to display them.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
