Seeing values : Axiology and affording attitude in Australia’s ‘Invasion’

Values permeate academic discourse but until now it has not been clear how we can see these values, let alone teach them to students. This chapter offers a method for seeing the values systems underpinning disciplines. It does this by drawing on both the LCT concept of axiological constellations and the SFL toolkit of appraisal to show how nuanced uses of language can reveal the intricate systems of terminology, ways of speaking and positions that indicate particular values. From a linguistic perspective, this opens a way of seeing highly implicit evaluative language known as ‘affording attitude’; from an LCT perspective, this opens the way to see the distinct positions and stances organizing communities of practice. As a case study, it will focus on a controversy in Australia associated with the use of different terminology for discussing European arrival to Australia, such as invasion vs settlement, and the broader description of the continent’s original inhabitants.