There is a visiting scholar in my department right now; one of those big legendary names in my field: Ruth Wodak. I went to one of her lectures this afternoon and learned about nationalism, identity, and language in the European Union, including different language requirements for citizenship and residency in some of the countries. That being said, doesn't look like I'll be becoming an Austrian resident or citizen any time soon.
I was also reminded of why I never really took to critical discourse analysis (CDA). There's something about CDA that seems so...negative. It doesn't need to be, I think, but in the pursuit of uncovering power structures and other un-pleasantries in discourse (often very real issues that do need to be discussed), the good and pleasant seem to get ignored. By highlighting the bad, they seem to forget the good, except for in small after thoughts and qualifying statements. I think balance would not be a bad thing, or the occasional study that demonstrates wielding discourse for the good.
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