PRAGMATICS

Pragmatics is the study of how language is used and of the effect of

context on language.
 Dimensions in Pragmatics
• Pragmatics is the study of speaker meaning .
Mary (Speaker): May I have a glass of water?
( The listener will interpret the utterance or context that the speaker is thirsty)
• Pragmatics is the contextual meaning
It is the interpretation of what exactly mean in specific context and how the
context influenced what he/she said.
Ex:
Tessa: Hi, How are you?
Jessa: It is lovely day.
Pragmatics involve three major communication skills:
Using language for different purposes, such as
• greeting (e.g., hello, goodbye)
• informing (e.g., I'm going to get a cookie)
• demanding (e.g., Give me a cookie)
• promising (e.g., I'm going to get you a cookie)
• requesting (e.g., I would like a cookie, please)
Changing language according to the needs of a listener or
situation,
• such as talking differently to a baby than to an adult
• giving background information to an unfamiliar listener
• speaking differently in a classroom than on a playground.
Following rules for conversations and storytelling, such as
• taking turns in conversation
• introducing topics of conversation
• staying on topic
• rephrasing when misunderstood
• how to use verbal and nonverbal signals
• how close to stand to someone when speaking
• how to use facial expressions and eye contact .
 Pragmatics & Context
Several types of context:
1. Physical context – objects surrounding the communication, place and
time of the the communication, what is going on around, etc.
a. I want that book.[ accompanied by pointing]
b. Be here at 9:00 tonight. [place/time reference]

2. Linguistic context – the linguistic context refers to what has been said
already in the utterance.
For example, if I begin a discussion by referring to Jane Smith and in the
next sentence refer to "her" as being a top notch athlete,
the linguistic context lets me know that the antecedent of "her" (the
person "her" refers to) is Jane Smith.
3. Social context – the social relationship of the people
involved in communication.
a. To the President: #Mr. President, stop bugging me
and go home.
b. To your friend: #I do hereby humbly request that you
might endeavor to telephone me with news of your
arrival at your domicile when such arrival occurs.
Better: Call me when you get home.
Note: In Linguistics, # is used to mark sentences that are
semantically or pragmatically odd.
4. Epistemic context – the epistemic context refers to what
speakers know about the world.
Epistemic: from Greek episteme (knowledge), epi + histanai
(to place, determine) .
For example, what background knowledge is shared by the
speakers is part of your epistemic knowledge. .
THEORY OF SPEECH
ACTS
Theory of Speech Acts
Speech act –It is an action performed by means of
language.
Ex.:
describing something ("It is snowing.")
asking a question ("Is it snowing?")
making a request or order ("Could you pass the salt?",
"Drop your weapon or I'll shoot you!")
making a promise ("I promise I'll give it back.")
We use language to do a wide range of things.
Ex.:
Conveying information: The PM is out of the country.
Requesting information: When and where is the lecture?
Giving orders: Stand up! Making requests: Please,carry my
bags.
Making threats: Do that again, and I’ll send you to your
room.
Giving warnings: There’s a spider on your shoulder.
Giving advice: You ought to go to the lectures every week.
 People use language with
communicative intentions.

Speech acts are acts of

communication that express those
intentions.
The locutionary act
The act of performing
words into utterances
that make sense in a
language with correct
grammar and
pronunciation.
 Example: Locutionary, Illocutionary and Perlocutionary act.
my saying to you "Don't go into the water"
(a locutionary act with distinct phonetic, syntactic and
semantic features)
counts as warning you not to go into the water
(an illocutionary act),
and if you heed my warning I have thereby succeeded in
persuading you not to go into the water
(a perlocutionary act).
Direct Speech Acts
An utterance is seen as a direct speech act when there is a direct
relationship between the structure and the communicative function of the
utterance. The following examples show that the form correspondences
with the function:
A declarative is used to make a statement: “You wear a seat belt.”
An interrogative is used to ask a question: “Do you wear a seat belt?”
An imperative is used to make a command: “Wear a seat belt!”

(Yule (1996, 55)

 Indirect Speech Act:
an indirect speech is one that is “performed by means of another” (Searle quoted in
Thomas, 1995, p.93).
That means that there is an indirect relationship between the form and the function
of the utterance. The following examples show that the form does not
correspondence with the function:
An interrogative is used to make a request: “Could you pass the salt?”
A declarative is used to make a request: “You’re standing in
front of the TV.”
“Do you know if Jenny got an A on the test? “
Conversational
Maxims
Paul Herbert Grice
 The Cooperative Principle

Grice suggested that conversation is based on a

shared principle of cooperation, something like:
“Make your conversational contribution what is
required, at the stage at which it occurs, by the
accepted purpose or direction of the talk exchange in
which you are engaged.” This principle was fleshed
out in a series of maxims.
 Grice’s Maxims
Maxim of Quantity:
1. “Make your contribution as
informative as required.”
2. “Don’t make your contribution
more informative than is required.”
Maxim of Quality: Be truthful.
1. “Don’t say what you believe to be
false.”
2. “Don’t say what you lack adequate
evidence for.”
Maxim of Relation: “Be
relevant.”
Maxim of Manner:
“Be perspicuous.”
1. “Avoid obscurity of A: Annie took off her socks.
She jumped into bed.
expression.” B: So Annie took off her socks
2. “Avoid ambiguity.” and jumped into bed.
3. “Be brief (avoid
unnecessary prolixity).”
4. “Be orderly.”
 Implicatures
These maxims (or, more precisely, their
violation) form the basis for inferences that we
draw in conversation, which Grice called
implicatures(to distinguish them from formal
logical implications). Grice asserted that
different ways of violating these maxims give
rise to different types of implicatures.
 How to Violate Conversational Maxims
•Overtly opting out/flout of a maxim:
James: How is the job search going?
Taylor: Sorry, that’s confidential?
(explicit information that maxim of quantity cannot be satisfied.)

A: What can you tell me about Catherine’s ability to concentrate on a task?

B: Catherine is a butterfly flitting from flower to flower.

James: Where does Professor Morgan live?

Tessa: Somewhere in Manila .
 How to Violate Conversational Maxims
violates maxim of quality)
(avoid falsehoods):
A: Tehran's in Turkey, isn't it?
B: Uh-huh, and Boston's in Armenia

A: Jim, do you know where the Big Ben Clock Tower?

B: It's in Hong Kong.
 How to Violate Conversational Maxims
the Maxim of Relation (be relevant):
A: What on earth has happened to the roast beef?
B: The dog is looking very happy.

A: I love your hair.

B: How are you?

A: I love you.
B: Did eat your dinner?
 How to Violate Conversational Maxims
Maxim of Manner (obscurity):
A: What are you baking?
B: Be I are tea aitch deeay wyesee ay kayee
A: Shall we get something for the kids?
B: But I veto I-C-E-C-R-E-A-M.

Maxim of Manner (prolixity):

A: I hear you went to the opera last night; how was the lead singer?
B: The singer produced a series of sounds corresponding closely to the score
of an aria from '"Rigoletto."
 I. Practice Exercises: Identify what is the violation
of conversational maxims of following.

1. Don’t be silly. I love working 80 hours a week with no vacation.

2. A: “Would you like to go out with Beatrice?”
B: “Is the Pope Catholic”?
3. A: “Let’s stop and get something to eat. The kids must be hungry.”
B: “Okay, but not M-C-D-O-N-A-L-D-S”
4. A: Excuse me–how much is this screwdriver?
B: $9.95. The saw is $39.50, and the power drill there on the table is $89.00.
5. A: Jane, can I have John's number?
B: Yes.