Discourse analysis as a methodological tool in research in human, social and applied sciences: contributions of charaudeau and fairclough

Abstract

This article presents the Discourse Analysis as a possibility of use for the achievement of research in the areas covered by the Human, Social and Applied Sciences in the form of a methodological resource. Seeking to break with the reductionist perspective of certain approaches existing in the academy, Discourse Analysis allows us to extract a significant amount of concepts, ideologies and social practices commonly found in objects and research subjects existing in the Human, Social and Applied Sciences, not contemplated by others. perspectives of analysis, mainly through positivist molds. It starts with Charaudeau and Fairclough's definitions about the understanding of discourse as a mode of action that, due to its dialectical relationship with the social structure, allows us to investigate discursive practices as material forms of ideology. This methodology contributes to the way in which official documents, legal norms, written and spoken speeches can be analyzed, showing that it is not just about neutral and impartial guidelines, but they articulate interests, design policies, produce social interventions and consensus. It is concluded that more important than making it possible to elucidate the conceptual or analytical richness of these areas, this preservation should not be confused with permissiveness, transforming the academic-scientific works of the Humanities, Applied Social Sciences into a den of arbitrariness only to agree with a prior thinking about the topic investigated by the scientist.