CONVERSATION ANALYSIS AS A DISCOURSE ANALYSIS METHOD

Abstract

The article deals with a modern approach to political discourse analysis - the method of conversation analysis. This method represents structural - semiotic investigation of the text. Its specificity consists in the fact that discourse is not studied in isolation but in unity with the context which shapes it in a certain way. The talk organization is determined by the rules of text unfolding, and each speaker makes their contribution to the verbal interaction. This study is based on the material of a fragment from B. Johnson’s interview with the editor of the BBC political division. The aim of the study is to identify and describe the specific features of verbal and non - verbal communication means used by politicians. The verbal interaction begins in the interview with the initial utterance of Laura Kuenssberg which indicates her communicative intention. Boris Johnson responds with a so - called response utterance. The order of speaking is indicated in different ways: the next participant of the communication is directly named, addressed, or described indirectly; the pronouncing of the initial stimulating part of the dialogic unity “question - answer” determines the next utterance but the speaker is not designated; the speakers themselves are to decide who and how continues the conversation. The article stresses the role of the non - verbal means of communication: in order to achieve maximum effect, the communicators combine verbal and non - verbal means; we come across substitution or replacement of the verbal means by the non - verbal ones: instead of saying “Yes” or “No”, the Prime Minister either nods or shakes his head. The method of conversation analysis does not only help interpret the content of the text, but also allows one to reveal its hidden meanings and, into the bargain, to model the mechanisms of communication, to analyze the structure of the talk, and to distinguish the linguistic means of organization of interaction between the discourse participants.