Critical discourse analysis of Chinese household appliance advertisements from 1981 to 1996
type: CreativeWork
description: The boom in the Chinese advertising industry after its economic reform in 1978 has aroused the scholarly interest of linguistic researchers. However, most studies of advertising discourse tend to consist of pure linguistic analysis focusing on vocabulary, grammar and textual organization. Little attention has been given to other components, such as the visual images of the advertisements, while study at the ideological level is rare. In order to fill this gap, I employed a critical approach to Chinese household appliance advertisements that appeared in the 1980s and 1990s.The theoretical framework for this research was constructed in line with the theories of Fairclough (1994, 2006), Altheide (1996), Wisker (2008), Halliday (2008) Dyer (1993), Williamson (1978, 2005), and so on. Of these theories, the theory of critical discourse analysis as developed by Norman Fairclough has been central throughout the research. The focus of the research is centered on the particular manifestations of the advertisements in magazines entitled Household Appliance rather than broad generalization. To this end, purposive sampling was undertaken and approximately 82 sample advertisements were collected covering three time periods within the general chronological frame of 1981 to 1996 (i.e. 1981-1985, 1986-1990 and 1991-1996). The data analysis has been conducted on the two major components: first, linguistic features with three values (i.e. experiential, relational and expressive values) and intertextuality; second, the visual images concerning the themes of actors, clothing, props and settings. The research findings revealed that the ideological values in the Chinese household appliance advertisements are embedded in the advertising language and illustrations. These ideological elements represent the values of culture, social relations, economy and politics. The findings also revealed that the ideological values were either dynamic or static, but they were intertwined. Meanwhile, the c…
abstract: The boom in the Chinese advertising industry after its economic reform in 1978 has aroused the scholarly interest of linguistic researchers. However, most studies of advertising discourse tend to consist of pure linguistic analysis focusing on vocabulary, grammar and textual organization. Little attention has been given to other components, such as the visual images of the advertisements, while study at the ideological level is rare. In order to fill this gap, I employed a critical approach to Chinese household appliance advertisements that appeared in the 1980s and 1990s.The theoretical framework for this research was constructed in line with the theories of Fairclough (1994, 2006), Altheide (1996), Wisker (2008), Halliday (2008) Dyer (1993), Williamson (1978, 2005), and so on. Of these theories, the theory of critical discourse analysis as developed by Norman Fairclough has been central throughout the research. The focus of the research is centered on the particular manifestations of the advertisements in magazines entitled Household Appliance rather than broad generalization. To this end, purposive sampling was undertaken and approximately 82 sample advertisements were collected covering three time periods within the general chronological frame of 1981 to 1996 (i.e. 1981-1985, 1986-1990 and 1991-1996). The data analysis has been conducted on the two major components: first, linguistic features with three values (i.e. experiential, relational and expressive values) and intertextuality; second, the visual images concerning the themes of actors, clothing, props and settings. The research findings revealed that the ideological values in the Chinese household appliance advertisements are embedded in the advertising language and illustrations. These ideological elements represent the values of culture, social relations, economy and politics. The findings also revealed that the ideological values were either dynamic or static, but they were intertwined. Meanwhile, the c…
author: Chong, Wang
language: eng
date published: 2015
date modified: 2026-07-24T03:26:33Z
provider: University of Northampton
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Northampton