Introducing Electronic Text Analysis: A Practical Guide for Language and Literary Studies

Introducing Electronic Text Analysis is a practical and much needed introduction to bodies of linguistic data known as corpora. Written specifically for students studying this topic for the first time, the book begins with a discussion of the underlying principles of electronic text analysis. It then examines how these corpora enhance our understanding of literary and non-literary works.In the first section the author introduces the concepts of concordance and lexical frequency, concepts which are then applied to a range of areas of language study. Key areas examined are the use of on-line corpora to complement traditional stylistic analysis, and the ways in which methods such as concordance and frequency counts can reveal a particular ideology within a text.The book also includes chapters on fields of study which have been 'revolutionised' by corpus techniques, such as translation studies, where the encoding of cultural values by corpora can influence the translation process, and language teaching, where data-driven learning is on the increase.Presenting an accessible and thorough understanding of the underlying principles of electronic text analysis, the book contains abundant illustrative examples and a glossary with definitions of main concepts. It is also supported by a companion website with links to on-line corpora so that students can apply their knowledge to further study.