Reconciliation Discourse The Case of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission |
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| Author:
| Verdoolaege, Annelies |
| Series title: | Discourse Approaches to Politics, Society and Culture Ser. |
| ISBN: | 978-90-272-2718-8 |
| Publication Date: | Feb 2008 |
| Publisher: | John Benjamins Publishing Company
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| Book Format: | Hardback |
| List Price: | USD $158.00 |
Book Description:
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This volume is a research monograph analysing the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) from an ethnographic/linguistic point of view. The central proposition of this book is that the TRC can be regarded as a mechanism that leads to the hegemony of specific discourses, thus excercising power. The analysis illustrates how, through a certain type of
reconciliation discourse constructed at the TRC hearings, a reconciliation-oriented reality took shape in post-TRC...
More DescriptionThis volume is a research monograph analysing the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) from an ethnographic/linguistic point of view. The central proposition of this book is that the TRC can be regarded as a mechanism that leads to the hegemony of specific discourses, thus excercising power. The analysis illustrates how, through a certain type of reconciliation discourse constructed at the TRC hearings, a reconciliation-oriented reality took shape in post-TRC South Africa. Basically, the study points to the long-term implications a truth commission can exert on a traumatised post-conflict society. The book is unique on several levels: TRC discourse is explored in-depth on the basis of personal stories from TRC testifiers; a combination of Poststructuralist and Critical Discourse Analysis approaches form the theoretical foundations; and an extensive bibliography provides an impressive database of TRC publications.