John Swales, in his essay The Concept of Discourse Community, establishes six characteristics that can be used to identify what qualifies as a community of discourse: a group of people who use social literacy practices to achieve a common goal. Because a discursive community is so difficult to define and there are so many different types and varieties of techniques, Swales encourages a view that relies less on a standard definition and more on a set of criteria that the group must meet to qualify (217- 218). Using this criterion, these six characteristics, it is no challenge to come to the conclusion that ECSU's Drama Society actually fits that description, four of which stand out as particularly applicable. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayCommon Objectives. The main goal of the Drama Society, articulated in an interview with club president Lucy Shea, is to “encourage students who are not theater majors to come and participate in different theater productions. . . It's about including others who are not in the theater program or the music program who simply miss theater in all its aspects. Additionally, the organization meets to vote on motions for the Oriental Theater department and serves as a liaison between students and professors in that department, goals all set forth in the club's mission statement and bylaws. Intercommunication mechanisms. There are several systems in place that help the group communicate effectively. The most significant are the weekly meetings on Wednesdays at 3pm, where the latest theatrical events or upcoming productions are discussed. At the end of each meeting, secretary Emily John documents the minutes, notes the content of the meeting, and sends the information to all student members, as well as the theater faculty. For this purpose the club uses an email list and also has methods of communication via social media. “Aside from meetings, Facebook I would say is our most active thing,” Shea explains, “because we post what we're doing in meetings and I need help with this event [open mic night], so it's pretty active. Our Facebook page is updated, I would say, every Tuesday on what we will do on Wednesday, or if the meeting is canceled, or when the auditions will be held. It's all in there. Specific vocabulary in general specific lexical for certain works or directions, and the Eastern Drama Society is no exception. Each term has its purpose and is used to quickly and effectively communicate what a person wants technological (when you're in the tech sector), it's the operation of the light panel" - a moniker, note, that is its own example of lexicon - "will say 'Going dark!' , which means the lights in the theater go out and everyone says "Thank you, dark!" It's to acknowledge that you heard them. So if I tell people something important, they will say, for example, 'Thank you, five!'" - indicating a five-minute break - "or 'Thank you, seats!'" - indicating that the actors should be in their seats for the top of the show. “We talk about blocking,” he continues, “we talk about stage right, stage left, above stage, below stage and that kind of terminology doesn't even end with directing terms like any field of study, actors have their own language. What the character means when he says a sentence is called.