Analysis of meaning 2022-23

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Consider the following situation:

In British (and Irish pubs), when someone says What

are you drinking? it is usually understood as offering to
buy the next round of drinks.

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Alan was a young man from an alcohol-free family.

He was training as a social worker. He knew English,
but he’d never been to a pub. He felt that if he was
going to be a social worker he’d better learn
something about pubs. He stepped into one,
desperately hoping for inspiration about what to do
next. To his relief, he recognised one of the two men
chatting at the bar. He decided to go and say hello,
casually ask what they were drinking and then order
the same for himself.

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Alan walked across, smiled, greeted his acquaintance

and, with a momentary look at the men’s glasses,
asked:
 ‘What are you drinking’?

They were all pleasantly surprised.

Why? What happened?

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Can you imagine other contexts where such a

question could be used and what pragmatic
meanings it would have?

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There is more to being a competent user of the

language than working out the literal meaning of
sentences.

Children provide illuminating examples of this:

(1) (A little boy comes in the front door.)
MOTHER: Wipe your feet, please.

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POLIGLOTTI4.EU from
telegraph.co.uk

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1.1. Pragmatics vs semantics

1.2. Definitions of pragmatics
1.3. Types of questions related to pragmatics
1.4. What is pragmatics about?

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Semantics  meaning of a linguistic expression

independently from context
Pragmatics  study of how meaning is produced
and understood in context.

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The study of language use, as opposed to language

structure
The study of the interpretation of linguistic meaning in
context
The study of speaker meaning and how more is
communicated than is said
The study of the science of language in relation to its
users
The study of meaning in use or meaning in context
The study of the relations between language and
context that are basic to an account of language
understanding

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Are we born with pragmatic abilities, or do we learn

them?
How do hearers disambiguate between ambiguous
words?
How do we assign reference?
How does irony work?
Why do we use figurative and non-literal language,
and how do these convey meaning?

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Why do misunderstandings occur between people

who speak the same language?
How do words convey different meanings in different
contexts?
How do we use language to make promises, threats
and bets?
What is the point of small talk?

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Communicating in a context
Choices:
(2) Close the window!
(3) Would you be so kind as to close the window?
(4) It’s cold in here, isn’t it?
When do you think each could be used?

(5) Her handwriting is excellent.

What different meanings can it have?

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Sentences:
Generated by grammar of language
Abstract entities
Syntactic and semantic properties
Sentence meaning

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Utterances:
Sentences used by speakers in a given context
They express propositions.
Acts of communication
Context-dependent
They do not need to be full, grammatical
sentences.
(6) On Monday.
(7) Absolutely!

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The same sentence can express different

utterances:
Example (5) above.

(8) Good morning!

What can it mean?

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The unit of analysis of pragmatics is the utterance

(stretch of speech or writing), defined by use.
Characteristics:
It is situated (contextual).
It is a unit of spoken (or written) behaviour.
It is not “right” or “wrong”, but “(in)appropriate”.
It may not be a complete/grammatical sentence.

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It’s the speaker’s intention: praise, criticise, request,

offer, give advice, scold, etc.
(9) JOHN: Shall we go to the cinema?
MARY: I have a migraine.
How can John interpret Mary’s utterance?
Hearer typically understands what the meaning
(what is said) and the force (what is meant).
BUT:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPmxsRDSmTc

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The context includes all those features in and

around the utterance that are relevant for
communication.
 YES:
 Speaker and addressee:
 Place:
 Time:
 Historical time:

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 Culture:
 Previous utterance(s):
A:
B: I saw him buying a new suit.
A:
B: I saw him buying a new suit.
 Linguistic channel:

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 NO:

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The context is not static. It changes alongside with

the conversation.
Besides, it’s not only context that influences the
interpretation of the utterances. A given utterance
can also produce a change in the context.
 (10) TEACHER: What’s up?

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5.1. J.L. Austin – How to Do Things with Words

5.2. Performatives and constatives
5.3. Locution, illocution, perlocution
5.4. Indirect speech acts
5.5. J. R. Searle

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How to Do Things with Words. 1962. Oxford: OUP.

‘Ordinary language philosopher’
Series of lectures given at Oxford University (1952-1954)
Book based on his own notes + recordings of his lectures
Earlier philosophers (Bertrand Russell)  everyday
language is defective, ambiguous, imprecise &
contradictory
Austin  how can people communicate so efficiently
with language just as it is?
We DO things with language.

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5.2.1. Definitions
5.2.2. Explicit vs implicit performatives
5.2.3. Syntactic and semantic properties of explicit
performatives

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Constative verbs are used to say things

(assertions/statements) . They can be true or false.
(11) a. Her sister lives in Alaska.
b. My neighbours’ dogs are barking again.
c. The elections will be held in December.

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Performative verbs are used to do things and they

do not assert anything, but rather get things done.
(12) a. I name this ship the Queen Elizabeth.
b. I now pronounce you husband and wife.
c. I sentence you to two years in prison.
d. I promise to come and see you tomorrow.
e. I command you to tell me the truth.
f. I apologize for not calling.

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Explicit vs implicit performatives:

In explicit performatives (12) there is a performative
verb, in implicit there isn’t.
(13) a. Tell me the truth!
b. I will definitely come and see you tomorrow.
c. You are an idiot!

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Syntactic and semantic properties of explicit

performatives:
1. They contain a performative verb.
2. The meaning of the verb can be reinforced with
the adverb hereby.
3. They typically occur with a 1st person singular
subject, and the verb is in the simple present,
indicative mood and active voice.

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2 important aspects:
Performative verbs can also be used descriptively
(as constatives):
(14) a. Peter’s daughter was baptized a couple of
weeks ago.
b. You are always promising to take the kids to
the park, but you never do.

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There are utterances with a first-person singular

performative verb that are constative and not
performative:
(15) A: What do you do when people want to see you?.
B: I promise I will visit them.

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Three-fold distinction:
Locution actual words uttered (‘what is said)
Illocution force or intention behind words
(‘what is meant’)
Perlocution effect of illocution on hearer
(16) (Looking at somebody with a piece of chocolate
cake)
That looks good! 
Please give me a piece 
The hearer gives the speaker a piece 

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Often both the locution and the illocution are

understood, but there may also be misunderstandings:
(17) (A man and a woman enter an art gallery. The man is
carrying a plastic carrier bag. The woman goes to buy
the admission tickets, while her husband has gone
ahead into the gallery).
OFFICIAL: Would the gentleman like to leave his bag
here?
MAN: Oh no, thank you. It’s not heavy.
OFFICIAL: Only ... we have had ... we had a theft here
yesterday, you see.

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The same locution can have different illocutionary

force in different contexts:
(18) How old are you?

What possible illocutionary forces can you think of?

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Different utterances can perform the same speech act

(illocutionary act, illocutionary force, force):
(19) Speech act: requesting someone to turn off the lights:
a. Turn off the lights!
b. Can you please turn off the lights?
c. Did you forget about the lights?
d. Are you a Basicpower shareholder?
e. What do big boys do when they leave a room,
Peter?

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When the typical form for a speech act is not used,

we talk about indirect speech acts.

Form Function
Declarative Statement
Interrogative Question
Imperative Command
Exclamative Exclamation

Which of the utterances in the previous slide would

be an example of an indirect speech act?

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He studied with Austin at Oxford.

Speech Acts: An Essay in the Philosophy of Language.
1969. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
‘A classification of illocutionary acts’. 1975a. Language
in Society, 5, 1-23.
‘Indirect speech acts’ in P. Cole & J. Morgan
(eds.).1975b. Syntax and Semantics 3: Speech Acts.
NewYork: Academic Press, 59-82.

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Propositional content (locution; what is said) vs

illocutionary force (illocution; what is meant) (1969).
Classification of speech acts (1975a).
Theory of indirect speech acts (1975b).
Rules for speech acts (1969).

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Representatives = speech acts that commit a speaker to

the truth of the expressed proposition: assertions,
affirmations, claims.
Directives = speech acts that make the hearer carry out
a specific action: requests, commands, advice.
Commissives = speech acts that commit the speaker to
some future action: promises, threats, oaths.
What is the difference between threats and promises?

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Expressives = speech acts that express the speaker's

attitudes and emotions towards the proposition:
congratulations, excuses, apologies thanks.
Declarations = speech acts that change the reality
with the proposition of the declaration: baptisms,
pronouncing someone guilty, pronouncing someone
husband and wife.

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Not an exhaustive list.

Other classifications have been proposed.
Often it’s difficult to distinguish between certain
speech acts.

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In cross-cultural pragmatics (comparing different

cultures) and intercultural pragmatics (speakers from
different cultures interacting):
 Requests
 Apologies
 Thanks
 Complaints
 Invitations

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6.1. Conversational implicature

6.2. The Cooperative Principle
6.3. The four conversational maxims
6.4. Flouting a maxim

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H.P. Grice worked with Austin at Oxford.

Seminal paper: ‘Logic and conversation’, 1975, in P.
Cole & J. Morgan (eds.) Syntax and Semantics 3:
Speech Acts. New York: Academic Press, 41-58.
He never fully developed his theory.
His work is somehow problematic.
BUT his attempt to explain how a hearer goes from
what is said to what is meant is extremely
important.

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It is the additional or different meanings that a

given utterance has, in a given context.
(20) Are you a Basicpower shareholder?
(21) Great, that’s just great!

Conversational implicatures arise from the

Cooperative Principle and four conversational
maxims.

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CP: Make your contribution such as is required, at

the stage at which it occurs, by the accepted
purpose or direction of the talk exchange in which
you are engaged.
We all work on the assumption that a certain set of
rules is in operation.

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The same happens when driving: we assume that

everybody will follow the rules.
Have you ever thought of what would happen if
people did not follow the rules?
Or if we couldn’t assume that they are following
them?

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When someone is NOT cooperative, we will try to

find a meaning for their utterance:
(22) (Sally has accidentally locked herself out of her
house. It is winter, the middle of the night, and
she is stark naked.)
SALLY: Do you want a coat?
HEATHER: No, I really want to stand out here in
the freezing cold with no clothes on.

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Quantity: Make your contribution as informative as is required (for

the current purpose of the exchange).
Do not make your contribution more informative than is
required.
Quality: Do not say what you believe to be false.
Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence.
Relation: Be relevant.
Manner: Avoid obscurity of expression.
Avoid ambiguity.
Be brief (avoid unnecessary prolixity).
Be orderly.

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When the maxims are observed, there is nothing very

interesting:
(23) RALPH: When is Mary’s plane arriving?
ANTHONY: Tomorrow at five o’clock in the morning.
Anthony’s answer is:
Quality Maxim
Clear
Truthful
Right amount of info
Directly answers question
 So, no implicature has been generated.

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BUT maxims may not be observed  flouting.

Situations in which the speaker blatantly fails to
observe a maxim, because they want the hearer to
look for a meaning beyond what is said.

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The speaker says something which is blatantly

not true or for which they lack the adequate
evidence.
(21) (Someone throws up on your new dress.]
YOU: Great, that’s just great!

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1) The speaker has expressed pleasure at having

someone vomit over her.
2) No one has ever been happy to be vomited on.
3) I have no reason to believe that the speaker is trying to
deceive me.
4) Unless the speaker’s utterance is totally pointless, she
must be trying to convey some other proposition.
5) And it must be some obviously related proposition.
6) The most obviously related proposition is the exact
opposite of the one expressed.
7) The speaker is highly annoyed at having someone
vomit over her.

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Another example:
(24) PATRICK: What’s your name?
SAMANTHA: Mary Poppins.

How would this utterance be interpreted?

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The speaker blatantly gives more or less

information than is required.
(25) RICHARD: I heard that Henry is a great pianist.
I wanted to hire him for my party.
MAGGIE: Yes, he plays the piano.

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The speaker gives a response which is obviously

irrelevant to the topic at hand, by changing the
subject or clearly not answering a question:
(26) (At a dinner, a conversation is going on about
politics, and it is becoming a little awkward,
because two of the speakers hold widely
different views. Then the host speaks)
HELEN: Did you know that Idris Elba might be
the new James Bond?

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The speaker is more obscure than necessary:

(27) (This interaction occurred during a radio
interview with an unnamed official from the
United States Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.)
INTERVIEWER: Did the United States Government
play any part in Duvalier’s departure?
Did they, for example, actively
encourage him to leave?
OFFICIAL: I would not try to steer you away from
that conclusion.

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