Reaction paper 2
1. Get familiar with the concept of a discourse community with the reader friendly examples on SocialMettle. (Links to an external site.) https://socialmettle.com/explanation-of-discourse-community-with-examples
A key distinction from communities in general is the word “discourse,” which refers to communication. This concept helps us understand and analyze writing from a specific angle.
What is a discourse community that you are part of? How does the group communicate?
2. John Swales is known for describing the concept of discourse community. Read his 6 characteristics download, which are a bit technical. Look up any words you don’t know. I like the website WordReference (Links to an external site.) (scroll to the very bottom of the menu for “English–definition” or use the dictionary for another language.
Working with at least one specific characteristic, does UC Davis fit the criteria for a discourse community? Why or why not?
3. Is your journal a discourse community? Explain referring to at least 3 of Swales’ 6 characteristics. You may want to consider the following questions: What does it reflect about the discourse community of its academic discipline? What are some characteristics of its communication? Does it use specific lexis? What can you say about its members, what they have in common, and their diversity?
As a next step, use your findings here to discuss the journal and how it communicates in paper #1. You are welcome to integrate this analysis in any section you see fit, and can choose to use the concept of a discourse community implicitly or discuss it explicitly. How can it help us understand the journal and its function?
Reaction paper 2
1. What is a discourse community that you are part of? How does the group communicate?
A discourse community comprise of people with several similarities and shared goals, hence work under written or unwritten rules. According to membership style, a discourse community can be either official or unofficial (Swales, 2016). According to John Swaleh, a discourse community is a group of people with relevant content and expertise in a specific area, sharing the same ideas, goals, and language, such as the Hong Kong study Circle with the same type of hobby.
I am part of the discourse community in my workplace. My colleagues and I form a discourse community handling some issues and focusing on a common field, which is educational training (Swales, 2016). Additionally, the group communicates through the use of some mechanisms, such as an email address and blogs, and the use of genres in communicating goals and aims of the organization, where meetings are held, especially during the pandemic.
2. John Swaleh Working with at least one specific characteristic, does UC Davis fit the discourse community criteria? Why or why not?
Yes, UC Davis institution fits fit to be a discourse community because it consists of groups or people with the same goals and beliefs (Swales, 2016). However, the institution’s communities form other discourse communities because the community members have the same goals and identity, such as the clubs, and education societies, such as the pre-med society, with students with the same interest, ideas, and goals. What makes the UC Davis communities a discourse community is due to shared goals and the use of the same traits, such as the use of a standard Instagram page and other social media platforms for sharing feedback.
3. Is your journal a discourse community?
My journal is a discourse community because it uses texts with the same goals, standards, and values (Swales, 2016). Additionally, the journal is written with the same type of specialized vocabularies and answering the same type of question, which involves defining a discourse community and the characteristics of a discourse community. The writer is writing about the discourse community about the UC Davis institution and discourse communities (Swales, 2016).
The journal uses common goals, genre with “lexis”, such as using specific abbreviations and acronyms, for instance, ES, and identity, through the questions raised at the beginning of the journal. Also, the journal’s messages have the same genre skills and focus on communicating to the same clientele, which includes readers or members with the same motive of finding out about the discourse community.
Reference
Swales, J. M. (2016). Reflections on the concept of discourse community. ASp. la revue du GERAS, (69), 7-19.
