inter-stratal tension

The Stylistics of Professional Discourse

Jan 12

ChRIS CLÉiRIGhbook publication No Comments

Title: The Stylistics of Professional Discourse
Publication Year: 2015
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
http://www.euppublishing.com

Book URL: http://www.euppublishing.com/book/9780748691692

Author: Martin Solly

Electronic: ISBN:  9780748691708 Pages: 168 Price: U.K. £ 70
Electronic: ISBN:  9780748691715 Pages: 168 Price: U.K. £ 70
Hardback: ISBN:  9780748691692 Pages: 168 Price: U.K. £ 70

Abstract:

‘Martin Solly elegantly demonstrates that stylistics can reveal how
professional groups mark their distinctive identity, with doctors, lawyers and
educators providing the model. He deftly draws out the stylistic techniques
that can create a sense of shared community, and in the process provides a
primer of approaches to analysing discourse.’
Michael Kelly, University of Southampton

Why are doctors’ prescriptions illegible and why is the language of the law
considered impenetrable to outsiders? Is it more difficult for non-native
speakers of English than native speakers to access the discourse of
professions such as the law and medicine? These are just some of the questions
covered by this innovative study, which uses the lens of stylistics to shed
light on how the discourse of professional communities is used not just to
convey meanings, but also to construct identity and a sense of membership.

Aimed at students and scholars of applied linguistics, language education and
communication studies, Martin Solly examines a range of professional
discourses, from the language of education to that of the law and medicine,
showing how knowledge of stylistics can provide the key for appropriate and
acceptable language use, enabling successful communication and potential
membership of professional communities.