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A Microethnographic Discourse Analysis of the Conditions of Alienation, Engagement, Pleasure, and Jouissance from a Three-year Ethnographic Study of Middle School Language Arts Classrooms

Heggestad, Robert C, II
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532090586719699

Abstract Details

2018, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, EDU Teaching and Learning.
This theoretical dissertation explores the constructs of alienation, engagement, pleasure, and jouissance as they relate to research and theory on and in classroom education, in particular in middle school language arts classrooms. The research questions ask: First, how is the construct of alienation conceptualized and made manifest in the classroom and how do these empirical findings of the condition of alienation refine the theoretical construct of alienation? Second, how is the construct of engagement conceptualized and made manifest in the classroom and how do these empirical findings of the condition of engagement refine the theoretical construct of engagement? Third, how is the construct of pleasure conceptualized and made manifest in the classroom and how do these empirical findings of the condition of pleasure refine the theoretical construct of pleasure? And fourth, how is the construct of jouissance conceptualized and made manifest in the classroom and how do these empirical findings of the condition of jouissance refine the theoretical construct of jouissance? The research questions are answered through four case studies. The dissertation takes an ethnographic perspective towards research, utilizing qualitative and ethnographic methods of data collection and analysis. Research was conducted on fifty-nine sixth and seventh-grade language arts students and five teachers across three years and four classrooms focusing broadly on student literacy practices. Over the three years of the study, eighty-two participant observations were conducted and over fifty-five hours of class time were video recorded. Data include video recordings, audio recordings, student and teacher interviews, student and teacher artifacts, and participant observation fieldnotes. Data were selected for their ability to refine extant theoretical constructs of alienation, engagement, pleasure, and jouissance and were analyzed through microethnographic discourse analysis (cf., Bloome et al., 2008). The theoretical construct of alienation is refined through Lacan (2004/2014; 1991/2007; 1966/2006; 1992) and his idea of surplus jouissance to argue that not all products created in school are alienating, by utilizing the notion of storytelling rights (Shuman, 1986) to discuss ownership claims, and introducing Bakhtin’s (1990) theory of aesthetic subjecthood via authorship to combat alienation. The theoretical construct of engagement is refined by critiquing the dominant definitions of engagement through an application of procedural display (Bloome, Puro, & Theodorou, 1989) to argue that what is often claimed to be engagement is not. The theoretical construct of pleasure is refined by drawing on Freire (1968/1993) and Bakhtin (1990; 1963/1984a) to suggest the pedagogic and emancipatory potential of laughter and pleasure. The theoretical construct of jouissance is introduced into discussions around education and refined by suggesting that jouissance is not an individual state but socially constructed.
David Bloome (Advisor)
330 p.
Education; Education Philosophy; Educational Psychology; Educational Theory
Student Engagement; Literacy; English Language Arts Pedagogy; Jouissance; Discourse Analysis; Alienation; Pleasure; Middle School Ethnography, Lacan

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Heggestad, II, R. C. (2018). A Microethnographic Discourse Analysis of the Conditions of Alienation, Engagement, Pleasure, and Jouissance from a Three-year Ethnographic Study of Middle School Language Arts Classrooms [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532090586719699

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Heggestad, II, Robert. A Microethnographic Discourse Analysis of the Conditions of Alienation, Engagement, Pleasure, and Jouissance from a Three-year Ethnographic Study of Middle School Language Arts Classrooms. 2018. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532090586719699.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Heggestad, II, Robert. "A Microethnographic Discourse Analysis of the Conditions of Alienation, Engagement, Pleasure, and Jouissance from a Three-year Ethnographic Study of Middle School Language Arts Classrooms." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532090586719699

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.