Discoursean

Discoursean is a term used to describe a practitioner or scholar of discourse analysis. The word blends "discourse" with the suffix "-an," following patterns seen in labels such as artisan or analyst. In informal usage, a discoursean is someone who studies or comments on how language in texts and talk both reflects and constructs social meaning, power relations, identities, and norms.

Origins and usage: The term does not have a single formal origin in major linguistic literature and is largely informal or colloquial. It appears primarily in online discussions and non-academic writing as a handy label for people engaged in examining discourse rather than as a standardized professional designation.

Scope and methods: A discoursean may apply methods from discourse analysis, critical discourse analysis, sociolinguistics, pragmatics, and corpus linguistics. Common topics include media rhetoric, political discourse, online interactions, framing, genre conventions, and the relationship between discourse and social action.

Relationship to established terms: Because discoursean is not an established term in peer-reviewed scholarship, most scholars would instead use "discourse analyst" or "critical discourse analyst" to describe similar work. The label can be useful in educational or speculative contexts to convey a practitioner’s approach.

Example: A discoursean might analyze how a political speech uses framing and stance-taking to influence audience perception.