Linguistic Analysis: Pragmatics, Discourse, and Society
Core Principles of Pragmatics
Pragmatics is the study of what speakers mean when they use language. It focuses on speaker meaning rather than the literal meaning of words. Pragmatics explains how context influences the interpretation of utterances.
Invisible Meaning and Context
Invisible Meaning refers to the meaning that is not explicitly stated but is understood through context and shared knowledge between speaker and listener. In pragmatics, more is communicated than what is actually said.
Context is the situation in which an utterance is produced. It is essential to understand the intended meaning. Context can be physical (place, situation) or linguistic (the surrounding words, also called co-text).
Deixis, Anaphora, and Inference
Deixis refers to words whose meaning depends on the context of the utterance. Deictic expressions include:
- Personal deixis: I, you
- Spatial deixis: here, there
- Temporal deixis: now, today
Anaphora is a type of reference in which a word refers back to something previously mentioned in the discourse. The word that is referred to is called the antecedent.
Inference is the process by which the listener uses background knowledge and context to understand what the speaker means. Successful reference depends more on inference than on dictionary meaning.
Presupposition: A presupposition is information that the speaker assumes to be true and known by the listener. Presuppositions remain true even when the sentence is negated.
Direct and Indirect Speech Acts
Direct speech acts occur when the grammatical form matches the function of the utterance. Indirect speech acts occur when the form does not match the function and the meaning must be inferred from context.
Discourse and Communication
Discourse involves several key elements:
- Cohesion: Refers to the grammatical and lexical connections within a text that link sentences together, such as pronouns, conjunctions, and repetition.
- Coherence: Refers to the logical sense and overall meaning of a text. A coherent text is easy to understand because the ideas are logically connected.
- Turn-taking: The system used in conversations to manage who speaks and when. Speakers take turns and respect each other’s speaking time.
Grice’s Maxims of Conversation
- Quantity: Give as much information as necessary, no more and no less.
- Quality: Say what you believe to be true and reliable.
- Relation: Be relevant to the topic of conversation.
- Manner: Be clear, orderly, and avoid ambiguity.
Sociolinguistics and Social Variation
Sociolinguistics studies the relationship between language and society. It analyzes how social factors influence the way people speak.
Social Dialects and Markers
Social dialects, or sociolects, are varieties of language associated with social groups, especially social class, education, and occupation. Education and occupation influence the way people speak; higher education is usually associated with more standard language forms.
Social markers are linguistic features that identify a speaker as a member of a particular social group, such as pronunciation or grammar choices.
Register and Linguistic Prestige
Register refers to the level of formality used depending on the situation. Speakers change register from informal to formal according to context.
Prestige is categorized into two types:
- Overt prestige: Socially valued standard language forms.
- Covert prestige: Non-standard forms that express group identity and solidarity.
The History of the English Language
English originated from the Germanic languages brought to Britain by the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes in the 5th century. During the Middle English period, the Norman invasion introduced many French words into the language. In the Early Modern English period, the invention of printing, the Great Vowel Shift, and the influence of Shakespeare contributed to the standardization of English. In Modern English, colonial expansion and globalization have made English a world language.
Summary of Sociolinguistic Concepts
Sociolinguistics: The study of language + society.
- Accent: Focuses on pronunciation.
- Dialect: Includes pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary.
- Standard English: The prestige variety.
Social Variation and Style
- Sociolect: Group language.
- Idiolect: Personal language.
- Register: Level of formality (informal / formal).
Change of Code and Style
- Code-switching: Changing between different languages or varieties.
- Speech (style) shifting: Changing style within the same language.
Prestige Types
- Overt prestige: Standard and formal.
- Covert prestige: Non-standard, expressing group identity.
Varieties of English and Discourse Rules
There are many different Varieties of English (British, American, etc.) with differences in pronunciation, vocabulary, and spelling.
Discourse Rules
To understand discourse, one must consider:
- Cohesion
- Coherence
- Turn-taking