Social representations in autobiographical narratives made by young students in a context of deprivation of liberty in Chile: an approximation base on the appraisal system

Abstract

In order to describe the discursive representations in autobiographical texts of young people deprived of liberty enrolled in an educational establishment complementary to the provisional detention center, this research discursively analyzed eight of these stories produced by different students. For this, the theoretical and methodological foundations of the appraisal system, proposed by Martin and White (2005), was used. Specifically, the discursive patterns composed of the meanings of attitude, engagement and gradation were determined and characterized. Consequently, it is qualitative research. Among the main findings, evaluative prosodies stand out, formed by negative assessments through which the vulnerable spaces of their origins are described in terms of danger resulting from the presence of drugs and crime in their daily lives.