Inspired by an interest in transformation and problems generated by the dynamic nature of language, technology, and societal ideological formations, I apply discourse analysis to a mental health website to shed light on how Americans respond to consumer-oriented messages about health and wellness. I am currently working on a book project, Selling Virtual Wellness, that provides a case study of an influential mental health website to understand how “wellness” is being marketed as an ideal to pursue and "disorder" is sold as the "normal" state of affairs. This project provides much needed research on how people are increasingly turning to blogs and discussion boards to “work on” the “project of the self” to make sense of self-identity in their everyday lives through telling stories.
CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS
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