When online message board discourse refers to itself.
What is it about?
A study of occasions when online message board users choose to refer to the discourse itself using an innovative model of grammar and discourse analysis called Linear Unit Grammar and Linear Unit Discourse Analysis.
Why is it important?
This book represents a significant landmark. Not only is it the first in-depth corpus-based study to be based on Linear Unit Grammar, it is also the first study to present a united model of both Linear Unit Grammar and Linear Unit Discourse Analysis. To illustrate this model, the book focuses on the role of discourse reflexivity in the linear structure of online message board discourse from the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) webpage. It is shown that discourse reflexivity plays a central role in the linear structure and antagonism characteristic of this type of discourse. This book will particularly appeal to those who have an interest in carrying forward the innovations in the description of grammar, lexis and discourse proposed by John Sinclair in his lifetime as well as to those with a specific interest in discourse reflexivity and computer-mediated communication.