"Reclaiming Power: Critical Discourse Analysis of Female Empowerment and Resistance in Song Lyrics"

Although Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) has been applied to a wide variety of texts, music lyrics – as forms of discourse that reflect, shape and challenge societal structures, especially in relation to gender – remain relatively underexplored. In taking a qualitative approach, the present dissertation addresses that gap by further investigating how female song lyrics – specifically Aretha Franklin’s Respect and Beyoncé’s Don’t Hurt Yourself – serve as powerful tools for conveying narratives of empowerment and inspiring female audiences to resist patriarchal norms. The main aim of this study positions song lyrics as dynamic sites of cultural negotiation and discursive resistance, contributing to broader processes of social change. Adopting a diachronic and comparative approach, the study places song lyrics within their historical, cultural, and social contexts, spanning from the 1960s to the 2010s. This allows for an examination of how the relationship between language, shaped by cultural and social dynamics, and gender has evolved over time. Moreover, the dissertation employs a multi-disciplinary methodology, incorporating approaches from CDA—including pragmatics, social semantics, Speech Act Theory, and socio-cognitive discourse studies—alongside insights from media studies and more. Particularly, song lyrics are analysed using Norman Fairclough’s three-dimensional model, which involves three stages: description, interpretation, and explanation. The findings build on existing research by highlighting the active role of language in both reflecting and shaping cultural beliefs, while also influencing broader societal dynamics. Ultimately, musical texts become spaces of female experience articulation and resistance to patriarchal norms.