Tag Questions in English

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Tag Questions in English

• Dr. Veronica Bonsignori
• A/A 2006-2007
• University of Pisa

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Some preliminary considerations

• Oral communication
• Speaking is basically interactional, i.e. its
  principal aim is to express personal feelings,
  to establish, reaffirm or maintain interpersonal
  relationships (Biber, 1988)
• Several factors intervene to build up a
  communicative situation, contributing to the
  utterance meaning and enriching the
  talk-exchange
• Prosodic features
• Paralanguage
• Linguistic strategies

It is important to take account not only of
what is said but also of how it is said
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Task

• Define Tag Questions
• Classification of the syntactic types
• Functions
• Syntax
• Pragmatics
• Varieties of English
• Intonation
• Examples taken from Films

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General definition

• Tag Question
• analytic and complex syntactic structure, typical
  of the English language
• Its a linguistic phenomenon pertaining to
  orality
• It entails a declarative sentence to which a
  shortened form of question is appended

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Main features
Its a nice day, isnt it?

• TQs are characterized by a syntactic dependence
  on the preceding main sentence operator
  subject pronoun
• The operator of the tag is the same as the one
  present in the preceding statement but if the
  main clause has no operator, the dummy operator
  do is used in the tag.
• The subject of the tag must be a pronoun which
  repeats or is in coreference with the subject in
  the main clause, and it agrees with it in number,
  person and gender.
• As regards polarity, if the main clause is
  positive, the tag is negative and vice versa.

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Syntactic types of TQs 1

• The regular type
• Reversed Polarity TQs (most frequent type)
• ( / -)
• WILL There. You think you look cool, dont you?
  (About A Boy)
• Case of negative tag with the 1st person
  singular pronoun and be as the operator
• DAVE Look, Ill help, all right? Im running,
  arent I? (The Full Monty)

ARENT I?
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• Case of negative tag with aint
• functioning as BE or HAVE
• Roxanne Hes busy, aint he? (Secrets Lies)
• Cynthia You've got a bed-sit, ain't you, Paul?
  (Secrets Lies)
• a non-standard contraction, typical of
  AmE and it is part of the traditional dialect
  system of the Southeast of England, BUT
  completely absent in IrE and ScE
• (- / )
• DANIEL Listen, you don't know where the loos
  are here, do you? (Bridget Joness Diary)
• WILL Look, I never said he was my son, did I?
  (About A Boy)

AINT
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Syntactic types of TQs 2

• The anomalous type
• Constant Polarity TQs
• ( / )
• FIONA So thats it, is it? (About A Boy)
• CYNTHIA Oh, you've got one each, have you?
  (Secrets Lies)
• (- / -)
• So he doesnt like his job, doesnt he?
• Negative CP tags are extremely rare

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Dialects

• The double negative tag
• This structure occurs only when the main sentence
  preceding the tag is negative
• Edinburgh Scots
• Your names no Willie, isnt it no?
• She didnae like him, didnt she no?
• Tyneside Dialect i.e. Geordie
• You cant do it, cant you not?

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Invariant Tags

• Non-standard variants consisting in structures
  that are independent of that of the main sentence
  and are expressed by single lexical items.
• Invariant tags may be adverbial or interjectional
  particles.
• Okay? / yeah? / no? / right? / all right? / eh?
• WILL Look, mate, nothing you do can make your
  mum happy, all right? I mean, not in the long
  term. She has to do that for herself. (About A
  Boy)
• The treatment of invariant tags is generally
  carried out within sociolinguistics (Stenström,
  1997 Stenström, Andersen Hasund, 2002), taking
  into consideration regional varieties of English,
  since both the form and the pronunciation may
  vary.

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English Varieties 1

• Eh? different phonological forms according to
  the varieties of English
• Australia, Scotland America
• New Zealand, Parts of Canada
• Canada,
• England
• ei e
• No syntactic restrictions It can occur only after
  a positive sentence, having a negative
  connotation
• NELLIE Now, if it's anything to do with the
  money, I've already told you, it doesn't matter
  any more, eh? (Eastenders)
• JAMES Oh, oh. Ah, Beatles lyrics, e? (Sliding
  Doors)

Hunh?
Eh?
E?
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English Varieties 2

• Innit Typical of London area
• The major users are the various ethnic minorities
  (West-Indian, Jamaican) who live in London, who
  then have influenced the standard variety
• It can function either as a real TQ or Invariant
  Tag
• MEL Its a bit backward, innit. (Bend it like
  Beckham)
• HORTENSE That's all that matters, then, innit.
  (Secrets Lies)
• PINKY (on the phone) Yeah? Mum! No, no, nothing.
  Im just at work, innit. Yeah, I know Pollys
  coming to do the suits. So Jess can get the
  tube, innit. Yeah, all right, all right. Ill
  pick her up. (Bend it like Beckham)
• INDIAN man E Time I got married, innit.
  (Secrets Lies)

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Particular syntactic structures and Tags

• Imperatives
• Exhortatives
• Ellipsis
• Change of auxiliary in the Tag
• Change of subject in the Tag

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Imperatives and Tags
Imperative will you?

• Positive Imperatives can either be followed by a
  positive or a negative tag
• use of a wide range of auxiliaries in the tag
• frequent use of Invariant Tags
• DANIEL Just give me a minute, will you, Simon?
  Thanks. (Bridget Joness Diary)
• HELEN Yes, it is, so just bear that in mind in
  the future, would you? Im getting over a major
  break-up. (Sliding Doors)
• MARCUS Just shut up, right? (About A Boy)
• Negative Imperatives are hardly ever followed by
  TQs. More often they are followed by invariant
  tags
• Dont make a noise, will you?
• DAVE Dont ever call me a fat bastard, all
  right? All right? (The Full Monty)

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Exhortatives and Tags

• Exhortative a type of Imperative
  construction, involving the 1st person plural
• BRIDGET Let's see, shall we? (Bridget Joness
  Diary)
• LET-construction Invariant Tags
• SHARON Well, look. Uh.. let's forget it for now,
  eh? I don't wanna waste my time on him.
  (Eastenders)
• SANJAY If we're gonna spend Christmas together,
  let's do it properly, yeah? (Eastenders)

LET-construction SHALL WE?
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Ellipsis TQs

• Cases of TQs appended to elliptical sentences
• TQs are important for the recovery of
  omitted items in the main sentence i.e.
  Subj. and V
• Ellipsis of Subj. Lexical Verb
• PAMELA E A bit snowy, isnt it? (Bridget
  Joness Diary)
• Operator Ellipsis
• IAN Well, if not, E just have to struggle on,
  wont we? (Eastenders)
• CINDY Ah... E Been counting, have you? Anyway,
  I been busy. E Helpin' my husband open his
  business, havent I?
• Ellipsis of the Subject
• GAZ We do. E Dont get your clothes dirty, do
  you? (The Full Monty)

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Change of Aux. Or Subj.

• Change of Aux./ Tense
• SONIA It'd be a bit squashed , won't it?
  (Eastenders)
• BIANCA Uh, I can't believe this. We can't win,
  couldn't we?
• Change of Subject
• TOM I think that deserves a toast, don't you? To
  Bridget... who cannot cook, but who we love...
  just as she is. (Bridget Joness Diary)
• WILL Marcus wouldnt kill a duck, would you,
  Marcus? (About A Boy)
• Elliptical Questions or Tag Questions?

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Prosody of TQs

• TQs can have either a rising or falling tone
• Positive CP Tags often have a rising tone
• He likes his job, doesnt he? ? Rising
• He likes his job, doesnt he. ? Falling
• On the basis of their intonational contour, TQs
  perform different functions
• Various functions may coexist in the same tagged
  utterance

Multifunctionality of TQs
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Falling
You didnt mind me sitting there, did ya.
Quiet, aint ya?
Rising
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1. Informational Function

• When the speaker entertains some doubts about the
  certainty or truth of the proposition in the main
  sentence ? verification-seeking function
• The speaker is open to any kind of response from
  the addressee
• Generally, rising TQs
• NATHE I dont like Chinese.
• GAZ Course you do, dont ya? ? (FM)
• HELEN Off the top of my head, you could have
  told them youd run out. Its, its popular
  stuff. Bullshit,bullshit, bullshit We are in
  PR. Thats what we do, isnt it? ? Pause
  But you didnt do that, did you ?, Paul? Pause
  No. Pause So Im out, am I ?? (SD)
• At Cynthias. On the phone with Hortense
• CYNTHIA Yes, what is it you want, darling?
  Hello? Did you want Roxanne? She's gone out.
• HORTENSE No.
• CYNTHIA She ain't in any trouble, is she? ?
• HORTENSE No, it's about Elizabeth. (SL)

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2. Confirmatory Function

• Tags are used with statements whose truth the
  addressee is thought to accept. The Speaker is
  certain of the truth of the proposition and
  simply asks for confirmation
• Generally, falling TQs
• NATHE (walking on wooden stick on water) Cant
  we do normal things sometimes?
• GAZ This is normal, int it ?, Dave.
• DAVE Oh, aye. Everyday stuff, this. (FM)
• HELEN Off the top of my head, you could have
  told them youd run out. Its, its popular
  stuff. Bullshit,bullshit, bullshit We are in
  PR. Thats what we do, isnt it? ? Pause But
  you didnt do that, did you ?, Paul?
  Pause No. Pause So Im out, am I ?? (SD)

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3. Facilitative Function

• Tags are used to indicate a positive interest in
  the addressee, offering him the chance of
  intervening in the talk exchange and allowing for
  turn allocation ? Interactional Function
• The Facilitative and Confirmatory functions often
  overlap
• CYNTHIA And here's another lavatory!
• MONICA Oh, that bathroom's mine, the en suite.
• CYNTHIA Oh, you've got one each, have you??
  That's nice, ain't it ?, Jane??
• JANE It's like a hotel! (SL)
• JAMES Elastic Thrombosis. They are guilty of
  lyric poaching.
• Theyre Beatles lyrics, arent they? ?
• HELEN I dont know, sorry.
• JAMES Of course you do. Come on, everyone is
  born knowing all the Beatles lyrics
  instinctively. (SD)

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4. Challenging Function

• Used to express disagreement, disbelief and
  surprise. It can be very aggressive and hostile.
  It can involve additional contextual attitudes,
  such as irony, sarcasm and mockery.
• CHRISTINE Well, this is Imogene. You can hold
  her if you like.
• WILL Yeah, got her. Yeah, shes.. delightful,
  isnt she?. (AB)
• MANDY Fine, whatever! If you want to go off and
  play your games, Gary, you can do that, but from
  now on, Nathans gonna have two parents. (FM)
• GAZ Ah! And your bloody live-in lovers gonna
  do that, is he! ?
• MARCUS You dont have a kid, do you. ?
• WILL What?
• MARCUS You dont have a kid, do you. ?
• WILL Of course, Ive got a kid! What are you on
  about?
• MARCUS No, you dont. Ive been watching you,
  and you dont have a kid. (AB)

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5. Peremptory Function

• Used to close off debate, on the basis of
  universal truths or evidence, in the form of an
  insult. Aggressive. No answer is expected.
• Generally, falling TQs
• MARCUS I got the letter, thanks.
• FIONA Oh, my God. Id forgotten.
• MARCUS You forgot? You forgot a suicide letter?
• FIONA I didnt think Id have to remember it,
  did I ?. (Silence) Did you read the part where
  I said Ill always love you?
• MARCUS Its a bit hard for you to love me when
  youre dead, isnt it. ?
• FIONA Im sorry. (AB)
• CYNTHIA Listen, I don't mean nothing by it,
  darling, but I ain't never been with a black man
  in my life. No disrespect, nor nothing. Id have
  remembered, wouldn't I! ? (SL)

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6. Antagonistic Function

• TQ follows a statement whose truth the addressee
  could not possibly know, since the content of the
  proposition represents new info for the
  addressee. It is very rude and impolite.
  Aggressive.
• Generally, falling TQs
• MARCUS Sometimes. I sing out loud without
  noticing.
• WILL Thats not a brilliant idea, is it?.
• MARCUS I said I did it without noticing, didnt
  I?? It just happens! Im not going to do that on
  purpose, am I! ? Im not stupid, you know?
  (AB)

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7. Aggravating Function

• Increasing aggressiveness, especially when tags
  are appended to Imperative constructions
• Rising TQ functions as an aggravator and
  strengthens the illocutionary force of the order
  in the main clause, together with the use of
  hostile and rude overtones
• GERALD (taking the remote to the Policeman) Look
  Excuse me, can I borrow this for a second?
  Look, (to Policemen laughing out loud) shut up,
  will ya?! ? Watch. (AB)
• TEACHER Get over here right now!
• WILL Just bugger off, will you? ? (FM)

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8. Softening Function

• it aims at reducing the strength of an utterance
  that may appear as threatening or disagreeable to
  the addressee, rendering it more acceptable and
  not offensive, especially with Imperatives ?
  mitigation
• HELEN I had a really nice time, James.
• JAMES Did you? Oh, shit! Sorry, thats against
  the rules, isnt it. ?
• HELEN Yes, it is, so just bear that in mind in
  the future, would you? ? Im getting over
  a major break-up. (SD)

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9. Hedge Function

• TQ aims at establishing common ground, still not
  expecting any answer
• Generally, falling TQs
• JENNY What do you do?
• HORTENSE Im an optometrist.
• JENNY Oh, really? Oh, God! It's one of those
  things you keep putting off and putting off,
  isn't it. ? And Ive got to the stage with the
  Guardian crossword where Im going like this.
  (mimicking) So I think the time has come, Ill
  have to pop in, you can give me a test. Where do
  you live? (SL)
• MONICA And this is the... oops!
• CYNTHIA Oh, that's a big lavatory!
• MONICA This is the downstairs toilet.
• JANE Oh, that's handy, isn't it,? 'cos if
  you're in the garden...

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Meaning of TQs

• Polarity

Syntax
Phonetics
Intonation/ Prosody
Pragmatics
Situational Context Illocutionary
force Politeness Aggravation/ Mitigation
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• Thank you!