经典：Understanding-Pragmatics

UnderstandingPragmaticsNankaiUniversityLiYi16August,2007Whatispragmaticsabout?PragmaticsisdefinedasthestudyoflanguageuseComponentsofalinguistictheory.Linguisticsistraditionallydividedintocomponentdisciplinessuchasphonetics,phonology,morphology,syntaxandsemanticsComponentsoflinguistictheoryBothphoneticsandphonologydealwithspeechsoundsMorphologyinvestigatesmorphemesSyntaxstudiesthesentence-formationprocessesSemanticsstudiesmeaningoflanguageatwordlevelorsentencelevelTheabovebranchesstudytheingredientsthatmakeupalanguagewithfocusonunitofanalysisMorris’distinctionbetweensyntax,semanticsandpragmaticsSyntaxstudiestherelationshipofsigntoothersignsSemanticsdealswithrelationsofsignstotheobjecttowhichthesignreferPragmaticsstudieswhateverrelationstherearebetweensignsandtheirusersorinterpretersApragmaticperspective-interdisciplinaryPragmaticstudyatlevelofspeechsoundsStudentswithasignificantdegreeofdialectalvariationwillfindthatthelanguagetheyusesoundsquitedifferentdependingonwhethertheyareinuniversitycontextorspeakingtotheirparentsPragmaticstudyatlevelofmorphologyCompounding:theword-formationprocesswhichexpandsthevocabularybycreatingnewwords.Forexample:housetreeNearmissPragmaticstudyatlevelofsyntaxThesamestateofaffairscanbedescribedbymeansofverydifferentsyntacticstructures.Forexample:JohnbrokethecupThecupwasbrokenbyJohnThecupwasbrokenPragamticstudyatlevelofsemanticsWordmeaning:Asawordgetsused,morehastobetakenintoaccountthanwhatwouldnormallyberegardedasits‘dictionarymeaning’.Manywordscannotevenbeunderstoodunlessaspectsofworldknowledgeareinvoked,aprocesswhichmakestheaccessibilityofmeaninggradable.Forexample:Non-smokingsectionToplessdistrictMentalmidwivesUnitanalysisAllcomponentsdisciplineshavetheirrespectiveunitofanalysis:speechsoundforphoneticsandphonologymorphemeformrophologystructureforsyntaxwordandsentenceforsemanticsPragmaticshasnounitofanalysisPragmatics:AlinkbetweenlanguagelifePragmaticsisconcernedwiththefullcomplexityoflinguisticbehaviour.Fromthatperspective,thereisnowayofaddressingissuesofcognitionwithouttakingsocietyandcultureintoaccount,noraretherewaysofaddressingissuesofcultureabstractedfromtheircognitiveunderpinningsandimplications.Pragmatics:AlinkbetweenlanguageandrestofhumanitiesandsocialsciencesNeurolinguistics:studiesthefunctionthebrainperformsinlanguagelearningandlanguageuse.Neurolinguisticsincludesresearchintohowthestructureofthebraininfluenceslanguagelearning,howandinwhichpartsofthebrainlanguageisstored,andhowdamagetothebrainaffectstheabilitytosuelanguage.Psycholinguisticsthementalprocessesthatapersonusesinproducingandunderstandinglanguagehowhumanslearnlanguage.Psycholinguisticsincludesthestudyofspeechperception,theroleofmemory,conceptsandotherprocessesinlanguageuse,andhowsocialandpsychologicalfactorsaffecttheuseoflanguage.AnthropologicallinguisticsStudyoftherelationshipbetweenlanguageandcultureinacommunity,egitstradition,beliefs,andfamilystructureSociolinguisticsStudyofallaspectsoftherelationshipbetweenlanguageandsocietymincludingthelinguisticidentityofsocialgroups,socialattitudestolanguage,standardandnon-standardformsoflanguage,thepatternsandneedsofnationallanguageuse,socialvarietiesandlevelsoflanguage,thesocialbasisofmultilingualism,andsoon.CorrelaitionalobjectJustasitisimpossibletoassignabasicunitofanalysistopragmatics,itisimpossibletoidentifyaspecificcorrelationalobjectCommontopicsinpragmatics1Debby:Goanywheretoday?2Dan:Yes,wewentdowntoComo.Upbybus,andbackbyhydrofoil.3Debby:Anythingtoseethere?4Dan:     PerhapsnotthemostinterestingofItaliantowns,butit’sworththetrip.5Debby:ImightdothatnextSaturday.6Jane:WhatdoyoumeanwhenyousayperhapsnotthemostinterestingofItaliantowns?7Jack:Hemeanscertainlynotthemostinteresting…8Dan:Justtryingtobepolite… DeixisDeixixmeanspointing.Thereareessentiallyfourdimensionsinvolved:timespacesocietydiscourseTemporaldeixistoday,nextFriday,thepasttenseofverbslikewentorsawNotethatvariablesalongthetimedimensionandanyotherdimensionhavenoabsolutevaluesDeicticcenter:thepointofreferencefromwhichtheotherdimensionislookedatSpatialdeixisSpatialdeixisismarkedbygoandanywherein(1),went,down,to,Como,up,andbackin(1)2,andtherein(1)3.Thediscourseitselfdoesnotindicatethedeicticcenter,whichisonlyaccessiblethroughknowledgeofthereal-worldcontext.SocialdeixisSocialdeixisanchorslanguageintoitsimmediateinteractionalcontextofuse.Thisprocessincludespersondeixis:you,they,he,I,weetc.Attitudinaldeixis:theuseofindeixicalexpressionswhichsignalaspectsofsocialstatusand/orformsofrespect,whetherornotgroundedin‘objective’status.choicesbetweenformalandinformalsecond-personformsofaddress,suchasT/VlanguageDiscoursedeixisDiscoursedeixisisinvolvedwheneveraformofexpressionpointsatearlier,simultaneous,orfollowingdiscourse.Forexample:Therein(1)3PointsbackatComoin(1)2Thatin(1)5referstothegoingdowntoComobroughtupin(1)2Youmean…yousayin(1)6Hemeanin(1)7Andtryingtobepolitein(1)8allreferbacktotheutterancemadein(1)4.SpeechacttheoryThistheorywasproposedbyJ.Austinandnowusedwidelyinlinguistics,referringtoatheorywhichanalysestheroleofutterancesinrelationtothebehaviourofspeakerandhearerininterpersonalcommunication.OriginalityofthetheoryThesubtitleofthebookis:“Howtodothingswithwords”Whatthetitleindicatesisthatlanguageisnotjustusedtodescribe,butalsotodothingsThree-partdistinctionbyAustinLocutionaryactIllocutuinaryactPerlocutionaryactLocutionaryactthesayingofsomethingwhichismeaningfulandcanbeunderstood.Forexample:ShootthesnakeSayingthissentenceisalocutionaryactifhearersunderstandthewordsshoot,the,snakeandcanidentifytheparticularsnakereferredto.IllocutionaryactUsingasentencetoperformafunction.Forexample:ShootthesnakeThissentencemaybeintendedasanorderorapieceofadvicePerlocutionaryactTheresultsoreffectsthatareproducedbymeansofsayingsomething.Forexample:ShootthesnakeTwo-partdistinctionbySearlePropositionalmeaning(alsoknownaslocutionarymeaning).Thisisthebasicliteralmeaningoftheutterancewhichisconveyedbytheparticularwordsandstructureswhichtheutterancecontains.Illocutionarymeaning(force)Thisistheeffecttheutteranceorwrittentexthasonthereaderorlistener.Forexample:IamthirtyTheprepositionalmeaningiswhattheutterancesaysaboutthespeaker’sphysicalstateTheillocutionaryforceistheeffectthespeakerwantstheutterancetohaveonthelistenerItmaybeintendedasarequestforsomethingtodrink.SpeechactAspeechactisasentenceorutterancewhichhasbothprepositionalmeaningandillocutionaryforceTherearemanydifferentkindsofspeechacts,suchasrequests,orders,commands,complaints,promises.Distinctionbetweenperformativesconstativesperformative:anutterancewhichperformsanacte.g.Watchout(=awarning)l       Ipromisenottobelate(=promise)Aconstative:anutterancewhichassertssomethingthatiseithertrueorfalsee.g.ChicagoisintheUnitedStates Distinctionbetweenexplicitandimplicitperformativceexplicitperformativesrefertothosecontaininga“perfomrativeverb”,suchaspromise,warn,deny,whichnamesthespeechactorillocutionaryforceofthesentenceimplicitperformativesrefertothosewhichdonotcontainaperformativeverb,suchasThereisaviciousdogbehindyou(=animpliedwarning).five-partclassificationofspeechactsCommissive:aspeechactthatcommitsthespeakertodoingsomethinginthefuture,suchasapromiseforathreat,promise,guarantee.Foreexample:        Ifyoudon’tstopfighting,I’llcallthepolice.(threat)I’lltakeyoutothemoviestomorrow.(promise)DirectiveAspeechactthathasthefunctionofgettingthelistenertodosomething,suchasasuggestion,arequest,,begoracommand.Forexample:Pleasesitdown.Whydon’tyouclosethewindowDeclarativeAspeechactwhichchangesthestateofaffairsintheworldInowpronounceyoumanandwifeExpressiveAspeechactinwhichthespeakerexpressesfeelingsandattitudesaboutsomething,suchasapology,welcomesandsympathy,acomplaint,tothanksomeone,tocongratulatesomeone.Forexample:ThemealwasdeliciousRepresentativeAspeechactwhichdescribesstatesoreventsintheworld,suchasanassertion,ahypothesis,aclaim,areport.Forexample:ThisisaGermancar.FelicityconditionsRefertothecriteriawhichmustbesatisfiedifthespeechactistoachieveitspurpose.Severalkindsoffelicityconditionhavebeensuggested.(I)PreparatoryconditionRelatetowhetherthepersonperformingaspeechacthastheauthoritytodoso.Forinstance,noteveryoneisqualifiedtofine,christen,arrest,etc.(II)SincerityconditionsRelatetowhetherthespeechactisperformedsincerely.Forexample:       Thespeakerisnotlying.(III)EssentialconditionsRelatetothewaythespeakeriscommittedtoacertainkindofbelieforbehavior,havingperformedaspeechact.Forexample:       Acceptinganobjectthatonehasjustrequested ExampleIpromisethesunwillsettodayThisutterancecannotbeconsideredasatruepromise,becausewecanonlymakepromisesaboutfutureactwhichareunderourcontrol.ThefelicityconditionsnecessaryforpromisesAsentenceisusedwhichstatesafutureactofthespeakerThespeakerhastheabilitytodotheactThehearerprefersthespeakertodotheactratherthannottodoitThespeakerwouldnototherwiseusuallydotheactThespeakerintendstodotheactImplicitmeaningTheimpossibilityofcompleteexplicitnessConventionalmeansforconveyingimplicitmeaningStrategicavoidanceofexplicitnessTheimpossibilityofcompleteexplicitnessTheuniversityisclosedduringChristmasholiday.Explicit?Implicit?ConventionalmeansforconveyingimplicitmeaningNapoleonwasdefeatedatWaterlooStrategicavoidanceofexplicitnessWhateverconventionalmeansareprovidedforconveyingimplicit(aswellasexplicit)meaning,theyarealwaysmanipulable.