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Chapter Eight Pragmatics. 1.1 Major concerns. Q: In what ways do we study language? Meaning Context. 1.2 Meaning: dictionary. He meant to write. intended A green light means go. indicate Health means everything. has importance What ’ s the meaning of life? point
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1.1 Major concerns • Q: In what ways do we study language? • Meaning • Context
1.2 Meaning: dictionary • He meant to write. intended • A green light means go. indicate • Health means everything. has importance • What’s the meaning of life? point • What does it mean to you? convey • What does ‘ghost’ mean? refer to in the world
Examples • Dog! • It’s cold here. • My bag is heavy. • “Janet! Donkeys!” (David Copperfield)
1.3 Sentence meaning • What does X mean? • Sentence: a grammatical concept, abstract, self-contained unit in isolation from context • Sentence meaning: abstract, intrinsic property, decontexualized
1.4 Utterance meaning • What do you mean by X? • Utterance: sth a speaker utters in a certain situation with a certain purpose • Utterance meaning: concrete, context-dependent • Speakers’ meaning
1.5 Sentence M vs. Utterance M (A little boy comes in the front door.) • Mother: Wipe your feet, please.
(A father is trying to get his 3-year-old daughter to stop lifting up her dress to display her new underwear to the assembled.) • Father: We don’t DO that. • Daughter: I KNOW, Daddy. You don’t WEAR dresses.
Sometimes we may know only Sentence M instead of Utterance M. • Some utterances are not grammatically complete sentences, such as “Ouch”. • Q: How do we recognize Utterance M? • Utterance M: Sentence M + Context
1.5 Context • Linguistic knowledge • Extra-linguistic knowledge
Linguistic knowledge • Knowledge of the language they use • Knowledge of what has been said before • Extra-linguistic knowledge • Knowledge about the world in general • Knowledge about the specific situation • Knowledge about each other
Examples • It was a hot Christmas day so we went down to the beach in the afternoon and had a good time swimming and surfing. • A: Do you like rugby? B: I am a New Zealander. • A: You speak beautiful English. B: My English is very poor.
Examples • 吃过了吗? (时间、地点不同产生不同意义吗？) 1、两个熟人打招呼。 2、说话人手里拿着包子。 3、说话人与听话人约好去超市，催促动身。 4、说话人与听话人密谋害人。
Examples • A：做啥呢？ B：看手机呢。 A：我早都看过了。 B：手机，我要买手机。
Examples • A: Are you going to the seminar? B: It’s on linguistics. • A: Would you like some coffee? B: Coffee would keep me awake. • A: 这件衣服很漂亮，可惜我今天带的钱不够了。 B: 那就下次再买吧。
1.7 Context & language use • C determines the hearer’s interpretation of what is said to him. • C governs the speaker’s use of language. • Q: Any examples?
Examples • In-class conversation vs. after-class • Borrowing a pen vs. 200 yuan • Borrowing sth from your classmates vs. from your teacher • Talking to a two-year-old vs. your parents • Talking to a girlfriend vs. boyfriend
1.8 Definition of Pragmatics • The study of language in use. • The study of language production & language comprehension. • The study of meaning in context. • The study of language in relation to its users. • The study of speakers’ M, utterance M, & contextual M.
2. Speech Act Theory • John Austin • How to Do Things with Words (1962) • speech acts: actions performed via utterances
2.1 Constatives vs. performatives • Constatives: utterances which roughly serves to state a fact, report that something is the case, or describe what something is, eg: • I go to the park every Sunday. • I teach English.
Performatives: utterances which are used to perform acts, do not describe or report anything at all; the uttering of the sentence is the doing of an action. • I do. • I name this ship Queen Elizabeth. • I bet you sixpence it will rain tomorrow. • I give and bequeath my watch to my brother.
2.2 Features of performatives • The first person singular • Speech act verbs / performative verbs: • The present tense • Indicative mood • Active voice
I take a cold bath everyday. • I jog ten miles every Sunday. • I like to drive fast cars. • Pedestrians are warned to keep off the grass. • Turn right. • Thank you!
I promise to be there. / I’ll be there. • I admit I was wrong. / I was foolish. • I warn you, this gun is loaded. / This gun is loaded. • I thank you. / I’m very grateful. • I apologize. / I’m sorry. • I order you to sit down. / You must sit down.
The distinction between constatives & performatives cannot be maintained. • All sentences can be used to do things.
2.3 Illocutionary Act Theory • Speech acts can be analyzed on 3 levels: • A locutionary act: the act of saying something in the full sense of “say”.
An illocutionary act: an act performed in saying something. • In saying X, I was doing Y. • In saying “I will come tomorrow”, I was making a promise. • Illocutionary force
A perlocutionary act: the act preformed by or as a result of saying, the effects on the hearer. • By saying X and doing Y, I did Z. • By saying “I will come tomorrow” and making a promise, I reassure my friends. • Shoot her!
2.4 Searle’s classification of speech acts • 1.representatives: stating or describing, saying what the speaker believes to be true. assert, state, swear, guess, deny, inform, notify, etc
2. Directives: trying to get the hearer to do sth. Request, advise, order, urge, tell, etc • 3. commisives: committting the speaker himself to some future course of action Commit, promise, threaten, pledge, etc
4. expressives: expressing feelings or attitude towards an existing state Apologize, thank, congratulate, greet, etc. I’m really sorry! Congratulations!
5. declarations: bringing about immediate changes by saying sth Declare, appoint, nominate, name, etc. I now appoint you chairman. I fire you!
2.5 Indirect Speech Act I request that you speak a little louder. Can you speaker a little louder? • An indirect speech act is one performed by means of another.
requests • Group 1: Sentences concerning H’s ability to perform A: Can you reach the salt? Could you be a little more quiet? You can go now. Have you got change for a dollar?
request • Group 2: Sentences concerning S’s wish or want that H will do A: I would like you to go now. I’d rather you didn’t do that. I would/should appreciate it if you would/could do it for me
request • Group 3: Sentences concerning H’s doing A: Officers will hence forth wear ties at dinner. Will you quit making that awful racket? Would you kindly get off my foot?
requests • Group 4: Sentences concerning H’s desire or willingness to do A: Do you want to hand me that hammer over there on the table? Would it be convenient for you to come on Wednesday? Would you mind not making so much noise?
3.1 Cooperative Principle • HOW do we manage to understand each other if in most cases we don’t say what we mean or we don’t mean what we say? • Grice’s theory Logic and Conversationis an attempt at explaining how a hearer gets from what is said to what is meant, from the level of expressed meaning to the level of implied meaning.
Make your contribution such as required at the stage at which it occurs by the accepted purpose or direction of the talk exchange in which you are engaged.
Maxim of Quality: Do not say what you believe to be false. Do not say something if you lack adequate evidence;
Maxim of Quantity: Make your contribution as informative as required (for the current purposes of the exchange) . Do not make your contribution more informative than required.
Maxim of Relation: Be relative. • Maxim of Manner: Be perspicuous. Avoid obscurity of expression. Avoid ambiguity. Be brief. Be orderly.
CP is meant to describe what actually happens in conversation. • CP and its maxims guide us. • Violation of CP and its maxims leads to conversational implicature.
3.2 Violation of the maxims (Quantity) 1. Dear Sir, Mr. X’s command of English is excellent. And his attendance at tutorial has been regular. Yours, XX
2. Aunt: How did Jimmy do his history exam? Mother: Oh, not at all well. Teachers asked him things that happened before the poor boy was born.
