Unveiling gender bias through corpus-assisted critical discourse analysis: A study of Indonesian Islamic preaching

Abstract

Background: This study examines how religious narratives in Indonesia both challenge and reinforce societal beliefs about women. Using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), it identifies gender biases in women's roles and duties as constructed by prominent Indonesian Islamic preachers. Methods: The study combines qualitative and quantitative corpus-assisted CDA of 45,125 words transcribed from six Indonesian-language Islamic preaching videos on YouTube. Analysis draws on Fairclough's (1995) CDA model, Van Leeuwen's (2007) discursive legitimation strategies, and Bourdieu's (1991) symbolic violence framework, linking micro-level textual legitimation to macro-level reproduction of gendered symbolic violence. Findings: Islamic preaching legitimises patriarchal beliefs as divinely ordained obligations. Legitimation strategies normalise unequal gender norms and confine women's roles to the domestic and moral sphere. Symbolic violence, doxa, and habitus jointly normalise gender inequality without overt coercion, embedding subordination as natural, virtuous, and spiritually rewarding. Conclusion: Religious preaching can function as a discursive mechanism sustaining patriarchal control, contrary to Indonesia's gender equality agenda, and calls for more egalitarian readings of Islamic texts. Novelty/Originality of this article: This study bridges Van Leeuwen's legitimation strategies with Bourdieu's symbolic violence theory to analyse contemporary, high-profile Indonesian Islamic preaching, offering insights for advancing gender equality in Indonesian religious and educational contexts.