1. What is power and how can it be used in spoken discourse?
Language and Power
What is power and how can it be used in spoken discourse?
The language of power attempts to exert influence or control. It
can appear in a variety of contexts and in both spoken and written
forms.
Political Language
- Repetition: ‘those who betray their party betray themselves’
- Three-part lists: ‘he came, he saw, he conquered’
- First person plural pronoun: ‘we must strive together…’
- Figurative language
- Rhetorical questions
- Hyperbole

2. Language and Power Legal Language Business
- this is quite distinctive with its own lexis and jargon.
- the syntax is often complex with lots of subordinate clauses and it can
also be repetitive.
- as it is so complex, knowledge of this language gives specialists a
distinct advantage over non-specialists.
Business
- power structures in business affect language e.g. managers may speak
more directly to their employees.
- nouns such as subordinate, superior, team leader and chief executive
are common in business.

3. Language and Power Education
- teachers will often use imperatives, ‘open your books’, and ask direct
questions, ‘what’s the answer…?’
- students use fewer imperatives and ask more indirect questions
- there is often an imbalance in address terms
What people call each other can reveal power relationships – what
forms of address might you use in the following contexts:
1.) Politics
2.) Law
3.) Business and Education

4. How can the following features display power in a conversation?
Language and Power
How can the following features display power in a conversation?
- Initiating a conversation
- Holding the floor
- Imperative sentences
- Interrupting
- Unresponsiveness
- Questioning
- Topic Changing
- Closing down a conversation

5. Language and Power
Look at the following short transcript and explore and examine how
the speakers exert power over each other:
A: it’s so funny isn’t it darling (1) do you like it (.) it’s really clever and //
B: // but it’s so unrealistic turn it off
A: you can’t say that (.) you’ve only just seen a bit of it
B: I don’t need to realise (.) to see how bad it is (.) it’s like //
A: // fine (1)
just put something else on