Pragmatics

1
Pragmatics

• "1. How do people communicate more than what
  the words or phrases of their utterances might
  mean by themselves, and how do people make these
  interpretations?
• 2. Why do people choose to say and/or interpret
  something in one way rather than another?

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
p. 70.
2
Pragmatics

• 3. How do people's perceptions of contextual
  factors (for example, who the interlocutors are,
  what their relationship is, and what
  circumstances they 75 are communicating in)
  influence the process of producing and
  interpreting language?"

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
p. 70.
3
Code-Model of Communication

• "communication is seen as an encoding-decoding
  process, where a code is a system that enables
  the automatic pairing of messages (that is,
  meanings internal to senders and receivers) and
  signals (that is, what is physically transmitted
  (sound, smoke signals, writing) between the
  sender and the receiver). According to this
  view, communication is successful to the extent
  that the sender and the receiver pair signals and
  messages in the same way, so that the message
  broadcast in the form of a given signal is
  identical to the one received when that signal is
  decoded."

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
pp. 70-71.
4
Expansion of Code-Model of Communication

• Good, as far as it goes, BUT human
  communicative behaviour relies heavily on
  people's capacity to engage in reasoning about
  each other's intentions, exploiting not only the
  evidence presented by the signals in the language
  code but also evidence from other sources,
  including perception and general world
  knowledge.

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
p. 71.
5
Sample Dialogue

• 1 Kiki Where are you going tonight?
• 2 Sharon Ministry.
• 3 Kiki Ministry?
• 4 Sharon Ministry of Sound. A club in
  London. Heard of it?
• 5 Kiki I've been clubbing in London
  before.
• 6 Sharon Where to?
• 7 Kiki Why do you want to know?
• 8 Sharon Well, I may have been there.
• 9 Kiki It was called 'The End'.
• 10 Sharon Nice one!
• 11 Kiki I hope you have a good time at
  the Ministry.
• (Contributed by Kelly-Jay Marshall)

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
p. 71.
6
Contextual Meaning

• These observations show that the meaning of an
  utterance is not fully determined by the words
  that are used there is a gap between the meaning
  of the words used by the speaker and the thought
  that the speaker intends to represent by using
  those words on a particular occasion. More
  technically, the linguistic meaning of an
  utterance underdetermines the communicator's
  intended meaning. This gap is filled by the
  addressee's reasoning about what the communicator
  (may have) intended to communicate by his or her
  utterance. Hence, pragmatics plays a role in
  explaining how the thought expressed by a given
  utterance on a given occasion is recovered by the
  addressee.

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
p. 73.
7
Cultural Literacy Knowledge

• Background Louis Warren is the publisher for the
  author Appin Dungannon. Everyone hates Dungannon
  because he is a vile human being. Warren also
  hates him. Warren goes to Dungannon's hotel room
  where he discovers that Dungannon has been
  murdered.
• Louis Warren kept staring at the body, idly
  wondering if he had two more wishes coming.

McCrumb, Sharyn. 1988. Bimbos of the Death Sun.
New York Ballantine Books, p. 114.
8
Cooperative Principle of Conversation

• " 'Make your conversational 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.' (Grice,
  1989 26)"

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
p. 73.
9
Grices Maxims of Conversation

• 1. Truthfulness Quality
• 2. Informativeness Quantity
• 3. Relevance Relation
• 4. Style Manner

10
Explaining the Impact of Social Factors

• Politeness Principle
• Pragmalinguistic Perspective
• Sociopragmatic Perspective
• Face Model of Politeness

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
pp. 75-77.
11
Getting Something at the Table

• I am eating at a table with other people. I want
  the salt. It is relatively far from me. What
  can I do / what should I do or say?
• 1. Reach for it. Not in chapter.
• 2. Stand up and reach for it.
• 3. Reach and say "Pardon my boarding
• house reach." Not in chapter.
• 4. Say "Pass the salt, will you?"
• 5. Say "Can you pass the salt, please."
• 6. Say "I like my food quite salty."

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
p. 76.
12
Pragmatics and Language Learning and Teaching

• Possibility (or likelihood) of pragmatic transfer
• Pragmatic proficiency and the value of language
  instruction
• Materials and methods for developing pragmatic
  proficiency
• Pragmatic performance and learner identity

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2010.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, An
Introduction to Applied Linguistics, 2nd edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70-88. London Hodder Education,
pp. 81-86.
13
Implications for Language Teaching, Learning, and
Use

• ? The Importance of Context
• ? The Complexity of Meaning Construction
• ? The Impact of Speech Act Theory
• ? Sociolinguistic Rules NOT in Chapter
• ? The Possibility (or Likelihood) of Pragmatic
  Transfer)
• ? People's Sensitivities to Face

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2002.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, pp.
74-91. An Introduction to Applied Linguistics.
London Arnold, Chapter 5, pp. 86-89.
14
Sociopragmatic IssuesWhat and What Not to Teach

• Consider whether you should teach students to do
  the following especially when you know their
  culture differs in the way it approaches these
  issues.
• say "Bless you" after someone sneezes
• call you by your first name
• say "thank you" in response to a
• compliment
• insist people respond positively to offers
• give fewer compliments that others may
• take as insincere
• be more open on taboo subject

Spencer-Oatey, Helen Vladimir Zegarac. 2002.
Pragmatics. In Norbert Schmitt, editor, pp.
74-91. An Introduction to Applied Linguistics.
London Arnold, Chapter 5, p. 89. With additions
by R. L. Good.