This course provides an introduction to the current issues and major theoretical frameworks in discourse analysis. Contemporary approaches to discourse analysis are extremely varied, being situated mainly in three broad groupings, namely "knowledge/information based", "socially situated/context or interaction-based", and "critical or ideology-based". Students will get an overview about the breadth of approaches to discourse analysis by reading original and recent work. They will also acquire hands-on experience of carrying out analysis of a range of phenomena in spoken and written language.