Introduction to Discourse
Student Number: 12022165
Academic year 2012/2013
TABLE OF CONTENT
1 INTRODUCITON
2 TURN-TAKING
3 STRUCTURE OF THE TURN-TAKING SYSTEM
3.1 Techniques for selecting the next speaker
4 OPENING AND CLOSING OF THE CONVERSATION
4.1 Openings
4.1.1 Topic
4.2 Closings
5 CONCLUSION
INTRODUCITON
In conversation people seem to follow a certain rule of communication which is often perceived as effortless as breathing but not many people are aware that turn-taking system as described in conversation analysis is deeply structured, organized and has a predictable pattern. It is also one of the basic mechanisms in conversations. This essay will illustrate how talk-in-interaction is constructed from the choosing of the topic, how the next speaker is chosen, how to recognize when it is appropriate to take turn and how long the pauses should be in the on-going conversation. Since some conversations do not follow the rules of turn-taking system it is important to know how and if the ‘repair’ is needed.
Turn-taking
Turn-taking system is one of the methods in conversation analysis which is focused on how people interact with each other and how they perceive their experience. People follow a sequence of utterances and converse with each other by interpreting the conditions which surround them during the conversation itself. Since speaking usually occurs in ‘real-time’ the responses we receive are measured in micro-seconds and the response itself can not be delayed which is the case in written feedback. It is vital that you know when your turn to speak is and that you know how to speak. Interaction would not be successful with interruptions and speaking out of context as it is considered impolite in most societies.
“By waiting your turn to speak and avoiding interrupting another person, you not only show your desire to work together with