Modality And Power Of Discourse

Personal advice column is a special type of discourse. In this thesis, through the analysis of 50 articles with various themes published in Reader's Digest personal advice column"Ask Laskas"in 2009, it is found how power is displayed through the variety of modal expressions.The present thesis adopts the modality framework of M.A.K. Halliday and the power framework of Foucault. The objectives are to study the ideology behind the language structure, the power behind the discourse and the proper way to give advices.The analysis is made up of four parts: modal application, value, metaphor as well as orientation. In each part, data are collected, calculated and analyzed. Tables are made to clarify the results. Summary is made at the end of each part, contributing to the conclusion.It is found in the analysis that the diversity of modality is a reflection of people's diversified emotion and power. The columnist may use imperative sentences or modals of high value, but softer tones with metaphors and implicit modality employed where necessary can greatly enhance the effectiveness of the advices given. The columnist, with her expertise, experience, reputation and social status, can influence the correspondents'ideology and persuade them to follow her advices. The more knowledgeable she is, the more powerful she can be.Besides, some suggestions are made on giving advices: to gain enough knowledge to be authoritative, especially in the area where one is consulted; to control the atmosphere by employing more linguistic skills, e.g. learn how to use metaphors and implicit modals instead of relying only on imperative sentences and high-value modal expressions.