Discourse Dynamics and Literary Essence in Text Analysis

The paper approaches the topic of discourse by performing a dual analysis of a literary excerpt from The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. After suggesting a theoretical framework based on theories on discourse, discourse typology and analysis, and features of literary discourses, the study continues with a dual-layer analysis of the literary excerpt. In the first layer, the study identifies general discourse features, such as cohesion, coherence, and context. The second part of the analysis evaluates the excerpt’s literariness based on concepts derived from literary theory, including fictionality, poeticity, inquisitoriality, licence, and contemplation.