Writing a thesis of "third generation" discourse analysis
This article, halfway between epistemology and empiricism, is both an attempt to present my own research and to think about its place in the area of discourse analysis, diachronically (i.e. considering the legacy of previous generations of discourse analysts) and synchronically (i.e. considering the different streams of the field of contemporary discourse analysis).
The article begins by showing how my work takes place in the field of discourse analysis, between appropriation of a legacy (object of research, theoretical frame, concern for epistemology) and innovation (original corpus – obituaries –, renewed transdisciplinarity, between linguistics and anthropology, analysis of new patterns of discourse, such as polysemioticity or tabular text). Then I clarify the way I position myself in the field of discourse analysis : I support an extended and radical theory of enunciation, which is not considered only a component of texuality amongst others, but penetrates all the spheres of discourse and work in synergy with all its components. Finally, this article intends to blaze the trail for theoretical renewal in the field of enunciation, especially as regards dialogism, direct address and tabular textuality.