International Journal of English Language and Translation Studies (Jun 2019)
The Role of Intertextuality in the Argumentative Writings of Advanced Iranian EFL Learners: A Discourse Analysis
Abstract
Intertextuality is related to the ways whereby new meanings are created from the old ones and deals with how newly-constructed discourse can incorporate previous texts by adapting and transforming them into new ones (Johnstone, 2008). The present study, using a (critical) discourse analytic framework and some systematic procedures, attempted to identify, qualitatively analyze and reflect upon the instances of intertextuality elements in the argumentative essays written by a group of advanced proficiency level M.A students of Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) and English Literature in a State university in Iran. Some representative instances of macro- and microlevel intertextuality (Ahmadian & Yazdani, 2013) are cited, compared and further discussed based on the structural conventions of the argumentative essay writing subgenre, the general knowledge and personal, academic and world experiences of the individuals and the social and ideological context in which the study was conducted.
