Mechanisms of a Discourse
What is a Discourse?
The term “Discourse” is rarely thought of in everyday applications of modern social roles, and the construction or practice of a new skill. James Gee wrote a very descriptive argument of his explanation of a Discourse, or a particular way of behavior, which includes many aspects of language, values, actions, and beliefs, to convey the difficulty in changing your lifestyle.
Correspondingly, Amy Cuddy gave a popular Ted Talk
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regarding how certain aspects of one’s life can be altered, and how to go about doing that. Some of both experts’ points are equal in their intention, showing the trials and tribulations of working into a Secondary Discourse, which is done after the Primary Discourse has been established.
How to Obtain a Secondary Discourse
There are few ways to achieve a Secondary Discourse, but Gee and Cuddy give both personal and experimental evidence that prove that there is a systematic approach to moving to a differing Discourse, including body language, along with its corresponding confidence changes, a pretending approach, and a matching saying-doing complex, all proving that entering a Discourse is a doable task.
Apprenticeship is the most accessible way to work into a Discourse. There are different ways of entering this apprenticeship, and the idea of an apprenticeship can mean different things in different contexts, but in some form, it is a necessary way of obtaining a new Discourse.
Gee’s main focus on how to get into a Discourse is related to learning with the help of someone else. Apprenticeship is an example of a way of becoming a part of a Secondary Discourse. According to Gee,
“Discourses are not mastered by overt instruction, but by enculturation into social practices through scaffolded and supported interaction with people who have already mastered the Discourse,” (7).
This idea of apprenticeship can take many different physical forms. Amy Cuddy coins the idea of “faking it ’til you become it” (19:14), suggesting that if a task or action does not come naturally, pretending as if it does will make it come easier and eventually allow it to become second nature. Both of these points represent how Gee and Cuddy believe that a Discourse is only mastered with the help of others; it is not something that happens independently.
Gee indirectly combats a similar notion by mentioning the gray area of apprenticeship and portraying it as the middle ground for either being in a Discourse or not. In his mind, “teachers of discourse take on an impossible task…” (Gee 12), as they are they must forego their own fear of being judged on both their knowledge of the Discourse and how well they are able to teach the aspects of it. When Gee speaks of “teachers”, he is referring to an
“apprentice relationship in a social practice (Discourse) wherein you scaffold their growing ability to say, do, value, believe, and so forth, within that Discourse, through demonstrating your mastery and supporting theirs even when it barely exists…” (11).
Essentially, when the apprentice does not have complete mastery of a certain skill, he/she acts like a “pretender to the social role indicated in the Discourse” (Gee 10), in order to gain the necessary skills of the Discourse.
His message parallels Cuddy’s, since her academic advisors and teachers were the main influence on her successfully completed higher education and, therefore, further development into her Secondary Discourse from an apprentice-based relationship. Both Gee and Cuddy similarly express factual evidence of ways to move into a Secondary Discourse; though the task is difficult, it can successfully be completed through apprenticeships.
Going along with Cuddy’s idea of “faking it until you become it” is Gee’s theory of Mushfake Discourse, which means “…making “do with something when the real thing is not available”” (Gee 13). Cuddy comes to adopt this conception as well, from her mentors. She proposed the question
“can you fake it till you make it? Like, can you do this for a little while and actually experience a behavioral outcome that makes you seem more powerful?” (Cuddy 6:57),
and through her work as a social psychologist and some research she both conducted herself and explored from others, found that there are adjustments that can be made to produce different outcomes, proving it is possible to move from one Discourse to another. Through Cuddy’s personal experiences she shares throughout her talk, it is apparent that acquiring her Secondary Discourse of more power and confidence was not an easy journey, which Gee also ensures by stating that,
“Social groups will not, usually, give their social goods-whether these are status or solidarity or both-to those who are not “natives” or “fluent users”” (Gee 10).
There seem to be few pathways of entry into a Secondary Discourse, since Gee’s main points all focus around apprenticeship, and also few people qualified or even willing to do the work of successfully teaching the entryway to a Discourse, which explains why the venture is challenging. Though both Gee and Cuddy express the difficulties of changing discourses, they both have given solid examples of how it can be done, showing that the task is possible, if “apprenticed in the “right” place, at the “right” time, with the “right” people” (Gee 11).
When Amy Cuddy was nineteen, she was in a tragic car accident, and struggled academically. She preserved through her college career with the help of her academic advisor. Once she finished school and got her degree, she used her “meta-knowledge”, a term Gee uses to explain the action of taking knowledge already learned from a Primary Discourse, and applying it to a Secondary Discourse, (Gee 12), by helping her student reach their potential, (Cuddy 18:07–19:33).
Cuddy puts her meta-knowledge, or previously acquired skills, to work for the betterment of a student, going back to Gee’s main point of Primary and Secondary Discourses, proving that Cuddy has moved into a Secondary Discourse. This point also brings into effect another apprentice-based relationship combining with learned metaknowledge between Cuddy and her struggling student; further illuminating Gee’s principles of apprenticeship as a way of entry into a Discourse.
Aspects of a Discourse Come Together
In order to be considered fully immersed in a Discourse, there must be a strong presence of a doing-being combination, meaning that one’s actions match their language. Gee gives a particular example of a man who enters a bar with a completely inappropriate disposition, showing that he did not belong in the neighborhood. The clear indicator was his language. “May I have a match please?” (Gee 5) does not match the stereotypical behavior of the type of man at the neighborhood bar, showing that he was not in that particular Discourse.
Cuddy also mentions a variation of Gee’s saying-doing combination, more centered on non-verbals, more specifically their body language, and the observed outcomes. She mentions,
“social scientists have spent a lot of time looking at the effects of our body language, or other people’s body language on judgments. And we make sweeping judgments and influences from body language. And those judgments can predict really meaningful life outcomes like who we hire or promote, who we ask out on a date…” (Cuddy 2:04),
suggesting that nonverbal aspects and forms of communication are a part of a certain Discourse.
Body language is also a characteristic that can be changed over time with practice,as Cuddy found out through extensive research. She concluded that changing your actions can affect the release of certain confidence-boosting chemicals in the brain. This connects to the belief that displaying a greater level of confidence through portrayed body language can allow one into a Secondary Discourse. The two examples from the different textual resources show that Gee and Cuddy can have altering explanations of a concept through non-related examples, but there is a solid foundation of information that base both theories in the same realm.
A Secondary Discourse is obtained after a Primary Discourse is created. The addition of a Secondary Discourse is difficult and requires help from a master, or apprentice of some kind. James Gee and Amy Cuddy make modern cases of different ways to go about acquiring these additional discourses, through paralleled examples and personal knowledge. Though the learner of a Secondary Discourse may not be fully comfortable, there is essentially no halfway point; one is either considered in or out, as indirectly discussed by both speakers. After looking at references, it is clear that the identification of a Secondary Discourse is taken seriously, and with definite commitment. Apprenticeships can lead to the gain of an additional Discourse, if the right criteria are met, including completing an apprenticeship, mastering a saying-doing complex, and using the skills previously mastered as a part of the process of earning the new Discourse.
Works Cited
Cuddy, Amy. “Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are.” TED Talk. Edinburgh, Scotland. 1 June 2012. Lecture.
Gee, James. “Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: Introduction.” Journal of Education 171.1 (1989): 5–17. Print.
