LINGUISTS : JOURNAL OF LINGUISTICS AND LANGUAGE TEACHING
Vol 12, No 1 (2026): July (In Press)

A CORPUS-BASED ANALYSIS OF LEXICAL FREQUENCY AS EVIDENCE IN UNDERGRADUATE LITERARY ARGUMENTATION

Widyaningrum, Agnes (Unknown)



Article Info

Publish Date
22 May 2026

Abstract

Despite the growing use of corpus tools in literary studies, little is known about how undergraduate writers transform corpus-generated lexical frequency into argumentative evidence. This study investigates how lexical frequency outputs from Voyant Tools are used as evidential support in undergraduate literary argumentation. Using a qualitative discourse-analytic approach, the study examines three purposively selected student mini-research articles from a corpus-assisted literature course. The analysis identifies a recurring frequency-to-claim trajectory in which writers select a salient lexical item, report its frequency, connect the numerical observation to an evidential bridge, and extend it into a literary interpretation. Across the dataset, lexical frequency functions as a warrant for keyword selection, thematic centrality, theoretical labeling, and methodological legitimacy. At the same time, the findings show that frequency alone does not ensure interpretive validity; persuasive literary argumentation depends on contextual triangulation, particularly through keyword-in-context (KWIC) analysis. As a small-scale exploratory study, this article proposes the frequency-to-claim trajectory as a conceptual model for understanding how quantitative outputs are transformed into qualitative literary reasoning and highlights its pedagogical implications for corpus literacy and undergraduate literary writing.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

linguists

Publisher

Subject

Humanities Education Languange, Linguistic, Communication & Media Social Sciences

Description

The aim of this Journal is to promote a principled approach to research on language and language-related concerns by encouraging enquiry into relationship between theoretical and practical studies. The journal welcomes contributions in such areas of current analysis in: Second and foreign language ...