A Critical Discourse Analysis of Wole Soyinka’s The Beatification of Area Boy
Chapter One
Aims and Objectives of the Study
The purpose of the study is specifically to:
- Prove that the play, The Beatification of Area Boy, can be analyzed using Norman Fairclough’s theory of Critical Discourse Analysis.
- Establish that the critical and objective analysis of this play will aid easy comprehension among scholars.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Preamble
In this chapter, the review of literature relevant to this analysis shall be done. The literature review will center on Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and its relationship with language, power, ideology, and reality. The review will examine what various scholars and philosophers have observed and identified in the field of Critical Discourse Analysis.
Discourse
The word “Discourse” originates from the Latin word “discursus” which denotes ‘conversation or speech’. It is the actual instances of communication in the medium of language. Johnstone (2) defines discourse as “an institutionalized way of speaking that determines not only what we say and how we say it, but also what we do not say which can be inferred from what we say.” It follows that Discourse is also concerned with language use in social contexts, as interaction or dialogue between speakers.
Discourse can also be defined as an extended stretch of language, such as conversations, narratives, polemical statements, political speeches, etc. It is not just a string of sentences, one following the other, but rather it exhibits properties which reflect its organization, coherence, rhetorical force, thematic focus, etc. Initially the term “Discourse” refers to speech, but later, its meaning extends beyond speech to include every instance of language use. The analysis of interaction or discourse is referred to as Discourse Analysis.
Discourse Analysis
Discourse Analysis is generally viewed as language above the sentence or the clause. It is the aspect of linguistics that is concerned with how we build up meaning in larger communicative, rather than grammatical units. It studies meaning in text, paragraph and conversation, rather than in single sentence.
Brown and Yule observe that Discourse Analysis examines “how addressers construct linguistic messages for addressees and how addressees work on linguistic messages in order to interpret them.”
Stubbs (1) describes DA as thus:
The term Discourse Analysis is very ambiguous… it refers mainly to the linguistic analysis of naturally occurring connected speech or written discourse. Roughly speaking, it refers to attempts to study the organization of language above the sentence or above the clause, and therefore to study larger linguistic units, such as conversational exchanges or written texts… discourse analysis is also concerned with language use in social contexts, and in particular with interaction or dialogue between speakers.
From this description of DA by Stubbs, we can gather some important information about the discipline:
(a) DA studies naturally occurring connected speech or written discourse.
(b) DA studies language above the sentence or clause.
(c) DA is concerned with language use in social context.
Every instance of language use is situated in a particular social context, which determines the kind of meaning communicated. There are contextual features that shape the kind of language people use. These include: the interlocutors themselves, their discourse roles, the physical environment of the discourse, the worldview and cultural practices in the domain of the discourse, and so forth. Discourse Analysis looks at language together with these features in order to interpret meaning. This is why any good Discourse Analyst will generate data based on observation and intuition of the language users. Discourse Analysts analyze conversations (casual, telephone, gossip, etc.), speeches (campaigns, formal speeches delivered by political figures, etc.), written discourse (novels, plays, news, written speeches, editorials, etc.). One major approach to doing Discourse Analysis is Critical Discourse Analysis.
A Brief History of CDA
Critical Discourse Analysis as a network of scholars emerged in the early 1990s, following a small symposium in Amsterdam, in January 1991. Through the support of the University of Amsterdam, Teun van Dijk, Norman Fairclough, Gunther Kress, Theo van Leeuwen and Ruth Wodak spent two days together, and had the wonderful opportunity to discuss theories and methods of Discourse Analysis, specifically CDA. The meeting made it possible to confront each other with the very distinct and different approaches, which have, of course, changed significantly since 1991 but remain relevant, in many respects. In this process of group formation, the differences and sameness were laid out: differences with regard to other theories and methodologies in Discourse Analysis and sameness in a programmatic way, both of which frame the range of theoretical approaches.
The philosophical and linguistic bases on which CDA is grounded are certain branches of social theory and earlier Discourse Analysis, text linguistics and interactional sociolinguistics. Certain proponents of CDA are influenced by Marx’s critique of the capitalist exploitation of the working class, his historical dialectical method, his definition of ideology as the superstructure of civilisation, and his notion of language as “product, producer, and reproducer of social consciousness” (Fairclough and Graham, 201).
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
Preamble
This chapter mainly focuses on the method by which the research is carried out. It comprises of the sources of data, the method of data collection, and the method of data analysis.
Sources of Data
The major source of data for the work is the play, The Beatification of Area Boy by Wole Soyinka which shall be perused objectively and subjected to critical analysis.
Method of Data Collection
The procedure for data collection will be through the careful selection of relevant excerpts from the play, The Beatification of Area Boy. These excerpts will be selected randomly.
Method of Data Analysis
The data analysis is done using Norman Fairclough’s theory of Critical Discourse Analysis. This theory will be used in analyzing the play because of its relevance to the research topic. This theory will encompass the textual, socio-cultural and political analysis of the play. In order to achieve the three aspects of textual analysis, the three stages of analytical procedure proposed by Fairclough (1989) will be used. These are discussed below.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
Preamble
This chapter examines the Critical Discourse Analysis of Wole Soyinka’s The Beatification of Area Boy, focusing on discourse elements such as interactional controls which include turn takings and topic changes, wordings, reference, collocates, socio-cultural practices and political issues in the text. All these will aid in the understanding and interpretation of the play so as to comprehend its overall message.
Textual Analysis of The Beatification of Area Boy.
In the textual analysis, the major interest is in finding out the different features of the text which add to our understanding of how language is used in particular situations in the text.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, FINDINGS, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION.
Preamble
This research has attempted a Critical Discourse Analysis of Wole Soyinka’s The Beatification of Area Boy. The study has therefore critically analyze the text. The present chapter presents the summary of the study, findings, conclusion and recommendation for further studies.
Summary
Chapter one provides a general introduction to the study of CDA, the statement of the problem, the purpose of this research, the research questions, the objectives of the research, the scope of the study, and the justification. It also describes the text that will be used for the analysis and provides information about the author’s background.
Chapter two reviews the relevant literature in the field of CDA. The review comprised of certain elements and features of Discourse, Discourse Analysis, Critical Discourse Analysis submitted and proposed by different scholars of this field. Three CDA theories by three different scholars were reviewed; Norman Fairclough, Ruth Wodak and Teun Van Dijk. The Norman Fairclough theory was chosen for the analysis of this text. The features discussed under this theory are interactional control, lexical cohesion, wordings, connectives and argumentation, social and political issues in the text. It also provides a brief history about the emergence of Critical Discourse Analysis.
Chapter three entails the methodology used in carrying out the research. It provides information about the source of data, method of data collection and method of data analysis.
Chapter four attempts the analysis of The Beatification of Area Boy by Wole Soyinka. It makes use of the theoretical framework to bring out the elements of Critical Discourse Analysis. Norman Fairclough’s approach, which proposed four elements for analysis,was used as the theoretical framework. The findings from the analysis is what would be discussed in the next section of the research work.
Findings
In the course of this study, some unique features were discovered during the analysis of the text. They were discovered with the use of CDA elements present in this text such as interactional control, connectives and argumentative, wording, lexical cohesion, socio cultural and political analysis.
The subject matter of the text is that of political exploitation, oppression and the barbaric nature of some African culture such as stealing of human organs for money ritual, the central symbol is that of power relation which is juxtaposed side by side with two different worlds in the same country; Sanda’s and The Military authoritarian leaders.
In the textual analysis, the turn taking technique has shown the power relation between discourse participants in each conversation. Power relations have been shown by speakers in a higher position or class, that is, speakers who are more superior tend to be in charge of a conversation than other low ranking speakers. The turn taking has been influenced by factors such as age, culture, occupation, personality and education.Power relation has been shown in the text which explains the nature of Nigerian society and how people relate with one another and shows superiority when taking turns.
The Socio cultural issues show how people’s culture affects their lives, shapes their thinking and belief and that of the society. Issues like ascribing meaning to changing weather, belief that human organ can be stolen by mere touch and so on, are discussed. The text projects a typical African life and presents African belief system with Barber at the centre of the issue. Barber, though an innocent character presents everything wrong with African culture through his character’s experiences, especially when it comes to barbaric nature of African practises. Although some are just mere fallacy, others reflect exactly what is going on in the society. The Political issues in the text presents how the political elite fail to discharge their primary duty and also how they exploit the masses through coercion.
The analysis of the text has made the researcher conclude that the play is a satire since it brings out the ills in the society in a funny way expecting people be aware of them, to laugh at them and derive lessons from them.
Conclusion
Finally, this research has been able to conclude that Critical Discourse Analysis, reveals the hidden meaning embedded in discourse made in communication and how it affects the society (either positively or negatively). The analysis of our data, The Beatification of Area Boy, has brought out power relation between two strata of the society; the political elite and the masses. The researcher in his opinion has brought out the social problems, power relations, political and socio-cultural issues in the text which reflects the happenings in Nigerian society.
The playwright, Wole Soyinka, used the text to show the world the effect of bad leadership, political exploitation, barbaric nature of some African cultures, amongst other social decadent. He has exposed the societal ills all over the country which consequently led to moral decadence and wanton exploitation.
Also, the researcher appreciates the writer for his special choice of language and for taking his time to make sure he uses language that is easy to comprehend in writing this text. Wole Soyinka in his book The Beatification of Area Boy should be lauded for appreciating and uplifting the Nigerian culture by the use of Yoruba songs and certain Yoruba expressions which portrays his own culture.
Recommendation
In relation to this research, it will be recommended that other researchers should endeavor to do more research and critical examination on the text in order to reveal elements that has not been analyzed by the researcher. The playwright is a world acclaimed writer and he has written several other plays that other researchers can analyze. This will definitely bring out other elements of discourse that some of his plays may not reveal.
Moreover, students should endeavor to read wide on Critical Discourse Analysis and make judicious use of the library in order for them to be able to carry out comprehensive analysis of texts with ease. Students should also make good use of the internet and other diverse sources of data. This will enable them to work at a fast pace without necessarily having to rely completely on a single source for help.
Works Cited
- Chinwe, Ezeifeka R. “Critical Discourse Analysis of Interpersonal Meaning and Power Relations in Selected Inaugural Political Speeches in Nigeria.”Unizik Journal of Arts and Humanities 14 (2013): UJAH. Web. 10 July. 2016.
- Encarnacion, Tenorio H.Critical Discourse Analysis: An overview.Granada: Uni. of Granada, 2006. Print.
- Fairclough, Norman. Language and Power. London: Longman, 1989. Print.
- Gillian, Brown and George, Yule. Discourse Analysis. Cambridge: CUP, 1983. Print.
- Johnstone, Barbara. Discourse Analysis. U.S: New Jersey. Blackwell Pub, 2002. Print.
- Maryam, Jahedi. “An Overview of Focal Approaches of Critical Discourse Analysis.” International Journal of Education & Literary Studies2.4 (2014): 2202-9478.Web. 21 March 2016.
- Michael, Coulthard. An Introduction to Discourse Analysis. London: Longman, 1997. Print.
- Michael, Stubbs.Discourse Analysis. Chicago: Uni. of Chicago Press, 1993. Print.
- Nobelprize.org Nobel Prize Media AB 2014. Web. 12 April 2016 http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1986/soyinka-bio.html Web. 12 April 2016.
- Norman, Fairclough.Discourse and Social Change. Cambridge: Polity Press, 1992. Print.
- Norman, Fairclough. Language and Power.2nd ed. New York: Longman.2000. Print.
