Discourse Organization on Asian Fashion Blogs Essay Example

Discourse Organization on Asian Fashion Blogs Essay Example Discourse Organization on Asian Fashion Blogs Essay Discourse Organization on Asian Fashion Blogs Essay Essay Topic: Blog Background of the study Blogging has emerged as one of the most popular forms of online discourse. The ease and lack of expense in setting blogs has raised intriguing possibilities for language learning in social media. The unique nature of its architecture and its low cost have not only affected how different bloggers can publish and distribute their work to a wider audience but also how they see themselves as writers.According to Blood (2002), blogs have been used in various ways: as online journals, a means of designing hypertexts, and more radically, to create what calls the first native form of discourse on the internet. She argues that blogging best reflects the dream of Tim Berners-Lee (2000), who was one of the principal designers of the World Wide Web, to make the Web into something truly interactive both in terms of how texts are read and how they can be easily posted and accessed.The growing interest in blogging has aroused the interest of English as a Second Language and English as a Foreign Language fashion bloggers who see blogging as a simple and low cost way of giving readers an access to publishing, advertising and distributing their writings on the internet as a method of providing them with the experience of writing in a digital format, and as a means of discussing issues related to their social and personal lives. According to Fleishman (2002), blogging is the art of turning ones own filter on news and the world into something others might want to read, link to, and write about.The openness can give the bloggers a greater sense of the variety of possible audiences they can reach, both for understanding these audiences and learning strategies to respond to them. These types of on-line discussions have been referred to as gated communities (Lowe amp; Williams, 2004). With regards to world Englishes, Kachru (1992) conceived the idea of three concentric circles of the language. The inner circle represents the traditional bases and is composed of native speakers of English (e. g.United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Anglophone Canada and South Africa, and some of the Caribbean territories). The outer circle includes countries where English is not the native tongue but they use it as a second language (e. g. India, Philippines, Singapore, Hong Kong) while those that belong to the expanding circle are the rest of the world where English is used as the primary foreign language (e. g. Russia, China, Japan, Korea, Egypt, Indonesia etc. ). This idea has helped to classify the eight Asian countries that will serve as the subject in this study on how they use English as a language.Kaplan (1966) claims that English writing is characterized by directness and deductive reasoning, while other languages (e. g. Oriental languages and Arabic) favor indirectness and inductive reasoning. At the same time, he attempts to link the differences in discourse organization between English and other languages to their respective cultures and thought patterns. He marked the birth of the notion now known as Contrastive Rhetoric. It assumes that different languages had their own specific and culturally bound conventions and patterns of writing.This may also tell if there are such characteristics in Asian fashion blogs. Moreover, with regards to each Asian blogger’s writing style, contrastive rhetoric should also be considered. Contrastive rhetoric is an area of research in second language acquisition that identifies problems in composition encountered by second language writers and, by referring to the rhetorical strategies of the first language, attempts to explain them. As summarized by Connor (1997), some internal and external forces give rise to this change in perspective.The internal force comes from criticism of contrastive rhetoric, which has required it to go beyond traditional linguistic parameters of analysis to consider discursive features, processes and contexts of writing. The external forces come from new developments in discourse analysis and changing focuses in first language composition research. To enrich further the structure of each blog, genre analysis will also be considered. This may identify if fashion blogging belongs in a specific genre by studying how the ESL and EFL bloggers use the language when writing.The focus of this study is on the discourse organization of Asian fashion blogs. Considering their writing style, comparing the blogs of these particular Asian countries that are categorized into two groups will be done throughout the study. Statement of the problem This study aims to a nswer the following questions: 1. What are the structures of a fashion blog? 2. What are the similarities and the differences between the fashion blogs of ESL and EFL writers? Significance of the study College students of English Language Related ProgramsKnowing that blog can also be studied as it is a part of our social world, this study can still be given more attention by giving further enrichment by the future researchers. They can provide new findings supported by different related literatures. As the traditional way of analysing language data from academic institutions, this paper will thoroughly investigate the language used in fashion blogs. This will further explore the online discourse by plunging into the grounds of computer-mediated-communication (CMC).Researchers in the Field of Linguistics This research paper will be able to support future research papers that are related to discourse analysis, world Englishes, contrastive rhetoric and genre analysis. As most of us tod ay enjoy the web 2. 0 which includes blogging ( slideshare. net/mcbuzz/blogging), it challenges the researchers to become more analytical in their field. As language researchers move forward by conducting thorough investigations, there will probably be new ideas that will be contributed to the field of Linguistics.Teachers and Professors of Language The study on contrastive rhetoric among students has always been limited to the doctorate material for pedagogical purposes which is believed to limit learners’ ability to express themselves. The paper will further explicate the online discourse specifically fashion web logging which has been considered as one of the tools to express oneself in social network. This would provide enough knowledge to expand the language teachers’ repertoire in different writing styles. BloggersWhether these people are in different forms of blogging, this study may inform them how important language is. In fashion blogging, it is inspired with different marketing strategies boxed with pictures that are inviting, description of every detail of it and stories experienced by the blogger. Also, they may be informed that this style of marketing includes certain rhetoric in it. Furthermore, this style of writing can be one of the factors of the increasing subscribers and viewers. A. Scope and LimitationWith the number of studies about the circularity and linearity among the ESL and EFL argumentative essays, court proceedings, business letters and newspapers, this paper focuses on the discourse organization of Asian fashion blogs. The study will only look into the structure of a fashion blog and to identify the differences and similarities of ESL and EFL writers. The EFL countries are Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand and the ESL countries are India, Singapore, Philippines and Hong Kong. These countries are only limited for each group. B.Definition of terms Blog is another term for web log, a social networking site ( s lideshare. net/mcbuzz/blogging) of discussion or information site published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete entries (posts) typically displayed in reverse chronological order so the most recent post appears first. Usually, it is being used as an online journal (http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Blog). EFL stands for English as a foreign language and pertains to how speakers use English for limited utilities, for example, for research references and sign boards.The countries that belong to this group are Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand while, ESL stands for English as a second language and refers to English speakers who could speak it intensely and intimately. In Kachru’s concentric circles, this group encompasses the countries that were colonized by the Western countries such as India, Singapore, Hong Kong and Philippines ( Kachru and Nelson, 2006). Web 2. 0 is a concept that takes the network as a platform for information sharing, interoperability, user- centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web (http://dictionary. reference. om/browse/weblog). CMC stands for computer-mediated communication, such as online chatting, online forum, discussion group and others. Contrastive Rhetoric assumes that a person’s L1 and culture influence his or her writing in L2 (Kaplan, 1966). References: Internet We’ve got blog: How weblogs are changing our culture. Retrieve on 07/18/2012 from amazon. com/Weve-Got-Blog-Weblogs Changing/dp/0738207411. The web: The original design and ultimate destiny of the World Wide Web. Retrieve on 07/18/2012 from amazon. com/Weaving-Web-Original-Ultimate-Destiny/dp/006251587X.Web Discourse Hits Higher Level. In We’ve got blog. Retrieved on 07/18/2012 from http://blog. lib. umn. edu/blogosphere/. Cultural thought patterns in inter-cultural education. Language Learning, 16, 1–20. Retrieve on 07/20/2012 from zhupinfan. com/5310/Kaplan. pdf. Blogging 101: An Introduction to Blogs and Web 2. 0. Retrieved on 08/20/12 from slideshare. net/mcbuzz/blogging-101-introduction-to-blogs-and-web-20-presentation. The American Heritage ® Science Dictionary. Published by Houghton Mifflin. Retrieved on August 28, 2012 from http://dictionary. reference. com/browse/weblog.Book Kachru and Nelson. 2006. Asian Englishes Today:World Englishes in Asian Context. Aberdeen: Hong Kong University Press Kachru. 1992. Teaching world Englishes: The Other Tongue English across Cultures. Illinois:University Illinois Press. Connor . 1996. Contrastive rhetoric: Cross-cultural aspects of second-language writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Theoretical Framework This study is supported with the three approaches namely Discourse analysis, Genre analysis and Contrastive Rhetoric. Limited to these three approaches, the study may be given emphasis and explained further.Discourse analysis originated from Greece. The term was formally from paper of Zelling Harris in 1952. It is the ter m of approaching to analyze communication of written, spoken discourse or speech acts in any kind of route of people use in discourse system. It refers to discussion or lecture of text but it is not only defined on texts. Also, discourse analysis is not only a sentence of discourse but also defined words, prepositions and speech acts of conversation and communicative events. According to Guy Cook (1992), it is not concerned with language alone. It also examines the context of communication.Since conversation is not possible to speak or listen alone, it needs to be interacted. To need discourse analysis is that the discourse organization is the way to shape and understand to know our speaking habits, thoughts. When people have conversation, even if there is same meaning of sentence, there is different affect through how speaker speaks. Discourse is based on the person’s cultural affects. According to Lilie Chouliaraki (2008), culture is constituted by the resources of meaning- making, language and image. For example, South Korea and North Korea have separated since 1945.There were already different cultures. Even in language. The sentence, il upda. ’ When person suggest to do something, North Korea say that it means, It’s fine. ’ But, for South Korea say that it means, It’s none of your business. ’ So, cultural affects of language is also important part of discourse analysis. As Swales (1990) defined genre analysis, it studies the language used in a particular setting: in rhetorical styles, discourse types and others. Also, it relates a particular research in discourse analysis for instance, to a specialist area of language.In academics and in research, this theory explains further its importance especially in studying the spoken and written discourse. Furthermore, the development of a student’s communicative competence and the shaping of language research can be attained through a genre based approach. Remarkable analysis of moves or functional sections in academic researches was also brought out. Genre analysis, according to Miller (1984), is the study of a discourse type of text where it is recognized through its characteristics, style or form.Swales (1990) added that genre analysis also focuses on the purpose of why such discourse type was written. Genre analysis embraces a range of tools and attitudes to text, forms detailed qualitative analysis of a single text to more quantitative counts of language features. Sometimes researchers work with a single text, either because it is inherently interesting or because it seems representative of a larger set of texts or particular genre (Patridge,2010). According to Kaplan (1966), English writing is characterized by directness and deductive reasoning, while other languages (e. . Oriental languages and Arabic) favor indirectness and inductive reasoning. At the same time, he attempts to link the differences in discourse organization between Engli sh and other languages to their respective cultures and thought patterns. He introduces the birth of what we called today as Contrastive Rhetoric. He explains that contrastive rhetoric is an area of research in second language acquisition that identifies problems in composition encountered by second language writers and, by referring to the rhetorical strategies of the first language, attempts to explain them.In other words, it is the study of how a persons first language and culture influence his or her writing in a second language. However, Houghton and Hoey (1983) have argued It [contrastive rhetoric] needs to be inserted within a broader scheme, to include the theoretical as well. It has been too long confined to being a notion rather than a theory. The area of concern needs to be broadened to the degree that rhetorical elements in non-Western cultures from philosophical to cognitive issues which influence the formation of culturally embedded rhetorical styles may be explored and then introduced to English nor ESL writing teachers.The concept of contrastive rhetoric is too multifaceted and important to be treated from only the linguistic perspective. The one area of study which offers at least a partial solution to the problem posed by Houghton and Hoey is that of rhetoric and composition. In order to establish contrastive rhetoric as a field where various rhetorically related issues from other cultures are discussed, contrastive rhetoric scholars must endeavor to discover specific rhetorical and cultural assets which will explain why writing styles differ from culture to culture.References: a. Internet Vijay Bhatia. Continuum International Publishing Group. Copyright. Retrieved on 08/17/12 from http://books. google. com. ph/books . The Linguistics Encyclopedia. Retrieved on 08/17/12 from http://books. google. com. ph/books. Discourse Analysis as Organizational Analysis. Retrieved on 08/02/12 from lsadc. org/info/ling-fields- discourse. cfm. Contrastiv e Rhetoric: Cross-Cultural Aspects of Second-language Writing. Retrieved on 08/05/12 from http://catdir. loc. gov/catdir/samples/cam031/95009965. pdf.A Study of Contrastive Rhetoric between East Asian and North American Cultures as Demonstrated through Student Expository Essays from Korea and the United States. Retrieved on 08/05/12 from http://faculty. fullerton. edu/jcho/chapter1. htm. Toward Critical Contrastive Rhetoric. Retrieved on 08/05/12 from http://writingcenters. org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Kubota_Ryuko_Critical-Intercultural-rhetoric. pd. b. Book Cook, G.. 1992. The Discourse of Advertising. London: Routledge Swales, J. M.. 1990.. Genre analysis : English in academic and research settings.Cambridge : Cambridge University Press Patridge B.. 2010. Continuum Companion to Research Methods in Applied Linguistics. London:Continuum International Publishing Group Conceptual Paradigm Asian Fashion Blogs Discourse Analysis Genre Analysis Contrastive Rhetoric ESL India Hong Kong Singapore Philippines EFL Malaysia Indonesia Cambodia Thailand The diagram shows the flow of the study. The arrows connect the subject which is the fashion blog to the EFL and ESL speaking countries. There are four chosen countries each to represent EFL and ESL writers. The four countries hat represent EFL writers are Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand and the other four countries that represent ESL writers are India, Singapore, Philippines and Hong Kong. Each blog will be analyzed through discourse analysis, genre analysis and contrastive rhetoric. In order to answer the statements of the problem, the diagram above will have to be considered. Fashion blogs will serve as the subject in this study. The group chose web logs for they serve as a social community for those who want to share their ideas and styles with regard to fashion.Furthermore, it also serves as an interactive marketing site where the bloggers apply their own marketing strategies (Richardson, 2001). This stu dy will find out if fashion blog has a definite structure among the chosen EFL and ESL Asian blogs. Due to the spread, functions and dynamic status of English in the changing Asian contexts (Kachru et al, 2006), there may have been differences and similarities between the fashion blogs of ESL and EFL writers. The three major methods namely, Discourse Analysis, Genre Analysis and Contrastive Rhetoric will help to describe the discourse organization of Asian fashion blogs.The focus of this research is on how Asian fashion bloggers write, on how these bloggers use English on a specific setting which is web log and on what particular genre does each fashion blog belongs. Chapter 2 Review of Related Literature The following related articles were gathered for the researcher to understand more what is being studied and to support the study that is being conducted. Kaplan (1966) compared the rhetoric and composition of students who were native speakers of English and ESL writers.According t o him, when he closely analyzed the composition of the ESL students, he realized that there were also differences when it comes to paragraph order and structures aside from grammatical or surface matters. According to Braine (2001) EFL writers have a higher quality of writing in traditional classes compared in a local area network. But other researchers (Biesenbach-Lucas, 2000; Gonzalez-Bueno amp; Perez, 2000; Gousseva-Goodwin, 2000; Kehagia amp; Cox, 1997; Perez, 2003) found out that there was no significant difference in writing neither in the quality nor the attitudes.The criticisms of traditional contrastive rhetoric on cross-cultural writing offer an alternative conceptualization for contrastive rhetoric. Contrastive rhetoric has an intellectual association with applied linguistics. As delineated by Pennycook (2001), critical applied linguistics aims to problematize as well as politicize the common understanding of second language learning/acquisition constructed by research an d instructional practices in such domains as language, text, pedagogy, and cultural difference. ReferencesWiley Online Library. Language Learning: A Journal on Research in Language Studies. Retrieved on 08/02/12 from http://onlinelibrary. wiley. com/doi/10. 1111/j. 1467-1770. 1966. tb00804. x/abstract. Eric Education Resources Information Center. A Study of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Writers on a Local-Area Network (LAN) and in Traditional Classes. Retrieved on 07/17/12 from eric. ed. gov/. Theoretical Foundations of Critical Contrastive Rhetoric. Retrieved on 08/02/12 from eric. ed. ov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini. jsp? _nfpb=trueamp;_amp;ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ730660amp;ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=noamp;accno=EJ730660 Chapter 3 Methodology This chapter presents how the data will be gathered, the sources where data will be gathered, a descriptive and a comparative analysis. 3. 1 Procedure This study aims to analyze the discourse organization of Asian fashion blo gs. The data will be gathered from the internet. The data from the top ten blogs for each Asian country will be gathered through the domains.These include the extensions on each blog site such as ph for Philippines, in for India, sg for Singapore, hk for Hong Kong. Considering the web traffic of each blog, the researchers will be able to know if the blogs belong to the top ten most visited blogs. Each Asian fashion blog post will be classified according to its writer. The top ten fashion blogs from the Asian countries that use English as a second language which are India, Singapore, Philippines and Hong Kong will be separated with the other top ten fashion