Discourse. Discourse means things people write or talk about. But it also means how people talk about or write things. When the woke use the term “discourse,” they're using it to mean stories, often called narratives, that people tell themselves and others. The word "discourse" is used to switch the conversation, and even the understanding of what people talk about, from capital T Truth to personal experience. A discourse turns the conversation from something that's a fact about the world to one's personal lived experience.