In:Contemporary Chinese Discourse and Social Practice in China
Edited by Linda Tsung and Wei Wang
[Studies in Chinese Language and Discourse 4] 2015
► pp. 27–44
Discourse and the Development of Public Sphere in China
A Law Case Study
Published online: 9 October 2015
https://doi.org/10.1075/scld.4.03tia
https://doi.org/10.1075/scld.4.03tia
This article examines public debate over the Wu Ying lawsuit case during
February and March 2012. In particular, it investigates discursive strategies
made use of by the public to form public opinion and to operate with on the
Internet. Starting from the CDA premise that discourse is constitutive in social
practice and Habermas’ conceptualization of public sphere, the article brings
the discursive strategies deployed into a discussion in relation to the complexity
of the discourse and the development of the public sphere in China. It is found
that the Internet-related new media devices contribute to the development of a
public sphere in China, and their contribution is facilitated by the deliberate use
of discursive strategies as social practice.
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