Researching for public spheres (selective and subaltern): contributions of critical analysis of genres

Abstract This article presents a methodological perspective for the study of the public spheres (selective and subaltern) from the critical studies of discursive genres. Considering that research on discursive genres appears as a possibility to understand how language creates and re-contextualizes social interactions, this study proposes a dialogue with the concepts of the public sphere (Jürgen Habermas), subaltern public spheres (Nancy Fraser) and discursive genres from Mikhail Bakhtin and Norman Fairclough. In analytical terms, we present possibilities for the analysis of primary and secondary genres through the categories of activity, social relations and communicational technologies in order to highlight and understand public spheres in Brazil.