The epistemics of authentication and denaturalization in the construction of identities in social interaction

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5 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study merges sociocultural linguistic work on identity construction in interaction with the study of epistemic management in conversation analysis (CA). While some CA scholars have examined identity without relying on epistemics, and others study epistemics without a focus on identity, I hope to contribute to a renewal in the exploration of identity and epistemics in interaction, building on a few recent studies. I examine the discursive processes through which an individual actively and assertively constructs his identities as a New York City resident, a Jewish person, and an actor. I focus on epistemics in the relational identity processes of authentication and denaturalization. I show how a speaker uses authenticating epistemic stances to legitimize his claims to knowledge and related identities, while also denaturalizing others' rights to knowledge, constructing their identities as inauthentic relative to his own. I argue that epistemics and relational identity processes may be fundamentally intertwined.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)571-594
Number of pages24
JournalLanguage in Society
Volume52
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1 2023

Keywords

  • actors
  • conversation
  • discourse analysis
  • Epistemics
  • ethnicity
  • identity
  • place
  • religion

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Language and Linguistics
  • Sociology and Political Science
  • Linguistics and Language

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