In Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: Introduction by James Gee, he talks about Secondary Discourses. Gee states, “institutions in the public sphere, beyond the family and immediate kin and peer group”. This means that secondary discourses are anything outside of your home, which is a primary discourse. A secondary discourse that I joined was the UNE community. Here at UNE I am continuing my learning academically and socially. When I observe people here they all seem to talk about brands and buying the most sought after, expensive brands you can find. An example of these brands are Patagonia, Vineyard Vines, The Black Dog etc. In the part of New York where I am from I had never heard of these brands, now in Maine those are practically the only brands I hear about and they are widely valued within certain social classes. In the UNE freshman class everyone has started over and is trying to branch out and make new friends, become part of a new posse. They believe that with buying these brands they will have an easier time fitting in, they are not wrong. At home everyone did things in posses if you were independent you were the “weird” one. Here at UNE everyone is independent there is no social dynamic of leaders and followers, you determine your own path.
Hi, Erica,
Good job working on the framing technique! Be sure to include an explanation that sets up the quote, though. In this case, you might add to the signal phrasing to clarify, such as, “Gee describes secondary Discourse as (then begin the quote)…”
Your observations about UNE are interesting. Who sets the expectations of brands? Are those the “leaders,” or are there groups that seem to set expectations of style? If a person does not wear those brands, do you think he or she would be considered “weird,” as you noted about the expectations of your high school peers?
I look forward to hearing more,
Jen