Francophone discourse analysis: A case study of representing native peoples and ‘contraband’ cigarettes in Anglophone and francophone Quebec media, 1993–1994

Abstract

Critical discourse analysis (CDA) addresses the relations between language and society. It is inspired, in large part, by the work of MAK Halliday. Yet the field of CDA, despite its international character, has yet to explore the contributions of discourse analysis developed outside of anglophone intellectual contexts. This paper seeks to supplement this absence through a presentation and case study of francophone discourse analysis (FDA). By FDA, I refer to studies on the relations between language and society which have been published in French, and which characteristically receive little attention in anglophone intellectual milieux. Notwithstanding the tremendous import of French scholars such as Michel Foucault, Pierre Bourdieu or Michel Pecheux within CDA, I am more concerned in this paper with the contributions of francophone critics whose work remains untranslated in English. Specifically, I draw on the writings and intellectual traditions of Régine Robin and Denise Maldidier.1 I begin with an overview of FDA followed by an application of its method. Specifically, I examine the representation of aboriginal peoples in the Quebecois mainstream media. My analysis focuses on a controversy surrounding ‘contraband’ cigarettes which were transported from the United States into Canada through native (Mohawk) reserves.