THEME AND RHEME IN AN SPM STUDENT’S MALAY ESSAY: A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This study examines the use of theme and rheme in a Malay-language essay written by a secondary school student preparing for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination and interprets the ideological meanings constructed through these choices within the textual dimension of Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). Previous research on Malay student writing has concentrated on technical weaknesses, vocabulary, and discourse markers, and has rarely connected clause-level information structure to the construction of ideology and social awareness; the novelty of this study lies in its integration of the theme–rheme framework from Systemic Functional Linguistics with Fairclough’s CDA to reveal both the linguistic quality and the ideological dimension of SPM writing. A qualitative document analysis design was employed. One essay, “Efforts to Prevent Landslides”, was purposively selected according to four criteria, segmented into 35 clauses across six paragraphs, and coded for theme and rheme before being interpreted through the textual dimension of Fairclough’s three-dimensional model. Coding was conducted independently by two researchers, reconciled through consensus, and reviewed by an expert. The findings show that themes function as points of departure that focalize the issue and sustain coherence through thematic progression, while rhemes elaborate causes, effects, and proposed actions. The analysis further reveals that the student’s language is not neutral: generalized actors such as “various parties”, recurrent modal necessity, and institutional themes normalize collective responsibility while obscuring specific accountability. The study contributes a discourse-level, ideology-sensitive lens for understanding and assessing SPM essay writing and underscores the pedagogical value of teaching theme–rheme organization. In conclusion, this integrated theme–rheme and CDA framework transforms the understanding of student writing from a mere object of technical assessment into discourse that constructs meaning, ideology, and social awareness.

Keywords: theme and rheme, thematic structure, critical discourse analysis, ideology, SPM essay writing