The Analysis Of English Demonstration Classroom Discourse From The Perspective Of Lotman’s Cultural Semiotics

At present, researches on classroom discourse analysis of English teaching at home and abroad center on teacher talk, classroom interaction and the right to speak, based on theories of linguistics, cognitive psychology, sociology and pedagogics. After reviewing the research status and discussing the insufficiency of classroom discourse analysis of English teaching both at home and abroad, this thesis brings Lotman’s cultural semiotics theory into the field of classroom discourse analysis and recommends treating classroom as a semiosphere. Five teaching cases were selected carefully from English Classroom Teaching Contests and then were transcribed into texts. By depicting the dynamic communication process between the teacher and the students in the classroom semiosphere, this thesis attempts to explore the inner motivity of classroom communication as well as the functions of classroom discourse in different communication models, so as to provide practical experience for classroom teaching.Based on text, Lotman divided the dynamic communication process within a semiosphere into five stages:contact, selection, internalization, integration and transmission. This process contains two communication models:"I-YOU" communication model and "I-I" communication model (autocommunication model). As the basic element of cultural semiotics study, text has functions of transmission, memory and creation. Any cultural phenomenon is supported and limited by text functions.As an important place for the transmission of information and culture, classroom has three characteristics of semiosphere - heterogeneity, asymmetry and the existence of boundary. Therefore, classroom can be regarded as a semiosphere, and the teacher and students as Umwelten. The heterogeneity of the semiosphere promotes the interaction and exchange among subjects in the semiosphere, which can achieve text’s functions of memory, transmission and creation. From the perspective of cultural semiotics theory, this thesis makes it explicit that the communication process in the classroom semiosphere should be dynamic and inter-subjective. Meanwhile it confirms the great significance of autocommunication model for the construction and generation of students’knowledge.