Communication of generations: Types of discourses and their essential features

Abstract

The article concentrates on the communication of generations. It also seeks to identify and differentiate specific features of discourses related to and connected with the interactions of generations. These discourses include the discourse about generations, generational, intragenerational and intergenerational discourses. The main differentiating criterion is the verbalized generational identity of one or more participants of the communication process. Addressing generational issues in the process of communication without actualizing the generational identity of the communicants and the accentuation of the thematic choice is a criterion for distinguishing the discourse about the generation as a separate subspecies. The coinciding or differing generational affiliation of communicants acts as a differentiating feature of generational, intergenerational and intragenerational discourses. The verbalized generational belonging of the addresser is the marker of a generational discourse. It usually has no designated addressee. If the generational identity of both the addresser and the addressee is revealed, the generational discourse is divided into intragenerational and intergenerational. If communicants belong to the same generation, the discourse is intragenerational. If communicants belong to different generations, the discourse becomes intergenerational. The concept of “generation” can be considered from a biological and social point of view. If communicants belong to different generations and are relatives, the subspecies of the discourse is the intrafamilial discourse (personality-oriented). If the communicants belong to different generations but they are not relatives, the interfamilial discourse subspecies is distinguished, which can be both personalityoriented and institutional in nature (if the communicants emphasize the function of the generation as a social institution).