Date of Publication

2008

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Linguistics

Subject Categories

Linguistics

College

Br. Andrew Gonzalez FSC College of Education

Department/Unit

English and Applied Linguistics

Thesis Adviser

Danilo T. Dayag

Defense Panel Chair

Sterling M. Plata

Defense Panel Member

Leonisa A. Mojica
Mildred Rojo-Laurilla
Rochelle Irene G. Lucas
Rhodora S. Crizaldo

Abstract/Summary

Most studies on legal language and legal decisions of courts have primarily focused only on their lexico-grammatical features including macrostructure pattern that give this discourse type its general characteristics. The present paper also covers the same textual parameters, but also looks at other extra-textual features that similarly affect the way meanings from these texts are negotiated. Twenty sample cases from the Regional Trial Court of Las Pinas City are included in this study. All sample texts were subjected to rigorous content and linguistic analysis. The linguistic analysis covered the lexico-grammatical features that were identified, tabulated, and interpreted using several theoretical perspectives. These same lexico-grammatical features, in turn, were analyzed for a whole range of socio-cultural perspectives: patriarchal tenor, ambiguity, and indirectness. Essentially, the study found that the sample legal decisions of courts operate using three organizational moves that include Preliminaries, Main Body of the Decision, and Judgment. In the context of the socio-cultural patterns implicated in the text, the analysis yielded the following results - that these texts are inherently ideological. As language is used to help resolve issues and other disputes, the sample court decisions considered for this study betray a power structure that favors one gender group over another. The deployment of the generic pronoun he in the sample documents helps position a very male- iii - centered orientation. The practice of marking women in relation to a man and the overt use of sexist language all contribute to this point-of-view. Through the lexico-grammatical investigation of the use of nominalization and passive verbs, and other instances of verbal excesses, a clearer connection has been established between the linguistic and socio-cultural features of the texts.

Abstract Format

html

Language

English

Format

Electronic

Accession Number

CDTG004482

Shelf Location

Archives, The Learning Commons, 12F Henry Sy Sr. Hall

Physical Description

ix, 292 leaves ; 28 cm.

Keywords

Law—Language; Law reports, digests, etc.--Philippines; Regional Trial Court (Las Pinas, Philippines)

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