Citizenship and semiotics : representing the state and the citizen in the English and French linguistic and social systems
This is a cross-over project concerned with both State Theory and Discourse Analysis which approaches both from an unusual angle. These academic disciplines have respectively focussed on the very abstract or the very particular in terms of state forms and outputs, with overarching policy directions and discursive tendencies being the main concern of the former discipline and the detail of spoken and written linguistic texts being the privileged point of access for the latter. This thesis addresses a gap in both focus and in detailed work by paying theoretical and analytical attenti~o a series of outputs of the state that have not previously been systematically and comprehensively examined as discourse - namely material infrastructures. It is argued that such infrastructures are not only discursive, or capable of generating meaning, but also that they may be described and analysed as 'semiotic resources' or 'modes of discourse' in their own right that are utilised in the creation of texts by means of which the state communicates with citizens. Use of a combination of theoretical models from the systemic-functional (SF) approach to semiosis sustains this argument and correspondingly enables the development of
Pagani, Giulio
Citizenship and semiotics : representing the state and the citizen in the English and French linguistic and social systems. This is a cross-over project concerned with both State Theory and Discourse Analysis which approaches both from an unusual angle. These academic disciplines have respectively focussed on the very abstract or the very particular in terms of state forms and outputs, with overarching policy directions and discursive tendencies being the main concern of the former discipline and the detail of spoken and written linguistic texts being the privileged point of access for the latter. This thesis addresses a gap in both focus and in detailed work by paying theoretical and analytical attenti~o a series of outputs of the state that have not previously been systematically and comprehensively examined as discourse - namely material infrastructures. It is argued that such infrastructures are not only discursive, or capable of generating meaning, but also that they may be described and analysed as 'semiotic resources' or 'modes of discourse' in their own right that are utilised in the creation of texts by means of which the state communicates with citizens. Use of a combination of theoretical models from the systemic-functional (SF) approach to semiosis sustains this argument and correspondingly enables the development of
citizenship semiotics represent state citizen english_french linguistic social_system cross over project concern state theory discourse_analysis approach unusual angle academic_discipline respectively focus abstract particular term state form output overarch policy direction discursive tendency main_concern former discipline detail speak_write linguistic text privilege point access latter address_gap focus detailed work pay theoretical analytical series output state previously systematically comprehensively examined discourse namely material infrastructure argue infrastructure discursive capable generate meaning also may describe analysed semiotic resource modes discourse right utilised creation text mean state citizen use_combination theoretical_model systemic_functional sustain argument correspondingly enable development