The BIG Question: - PowerPoint Presentation

The BIG Question: Keywords: Do we say what we mean and mean what we say? What’s happening here?

Minimum Expectation: Challenge Yourself:

Pragmatics is all about social and cultural understanding. It can also be termed as hidden meanings or “what is really meant” On a more base level, it can be described as “not sticking your foot in it socially ”. Pragmatics is also about ways of decoding meaning. Many things have a literal meaning (like denotation or taking as what the words say). However, many things have a PRAGMATIC meaning – this is almost like “reading between the lines ”. The world would be so much easier if everyone just said what they meant, but this could also actually be quite tricky ''are you wearing those shoes tonight?'' Those shoes are disgusting don't wear them! The meaning of what people say isn't always as clear-cut as it may seem - there are lots of unwritten social rules that prevent people from saying certain things you wouldn't ask the queen to put the kettle on! There are social conventions that make people say things in social situations saying thank you when somebody gives you something PRAGMATICS

There are social conventions that make people say things in social situations saying thank you when somebody gives you something PRAGMATICS It's about how people get their meaning across within different social situations - people often have to imply meanings rather than explicitly state them So....pragmatics is the meaning BEHIND what has been said -the sub-text Sometimes people don't address each other as they should - if family members address each other formally then it might suggest they don't get on and feel uncomfortable around each other Non-verbal aspects of speech help communicate attitudes and meaning…

A man is sat on a bench. Another man comes and sits next to him and says, “It looks a bit like rain today.” Is he… Informing an ignorant man of the weather. Trying to start a conversation.Arguing.Starting a fight. “It looks like rain today” is an example of a.. Declarative InterrogativeSuperlativeComparative A teacher says to a student coming through the door, “What time do you call this?”. Does the teacher…Want to check if the student’s time piece is accurate. Expect the answer, “Greenwich mean time.”Want an apology.Genuinely want to know the time. Pragmatics

Grice’s Maxims When the queen asked how I was, I replied, “f***! S*** my Q*** C*** Z*** or I’ll D*** S*** B*******!” QuantityQuality MannerRelation Which maxim is being flaunted?

Order the following utterances, Asking for a pen from a teacher, politest to least polite: "Ooh, I want to use one of those!" "So, is it OK if I use one of those pens?" "Hmm, I sure could use a blue pen right now." "I'm sorry to bother you but, I just wanted to ask you if I could use one of those pens?"

Positive and Negative Politeness: "So, is it OK if I use one of those pens?" "I'm sorry to bother you but, I just wanted to ask you if I could use one of those pens?“

Positive and Negative Politeness: "So, is it OK if I use one of those pens?" is the Positive Politeness strategy. In this situation you recognise that your teacher has a desire to be respected. It also confirms that the relationship is friendly and expresses group reciprocity. "I'm sorry to bother you but, I just wanted to ask you if I could use one of those pens?“ is Negative Politeness strategy which is similar to Positive Politeness in that you recognise that they want to be respected. However, you also assume that you are in some way imposing on them. Both ASK for a pen. Positive – assumes we’re friends Negative – assumes we’re not

Uses and generalisations Positive face – the need to be liked and acceptedNegative face – our right not to be imposed uponPositive politeness – shared dialect, informal grammar and lexis, emphasises solidarity with friends.Negative politeness – more formal lexis and grammar, to emphasise a social distance and gain respect.

Politeness Theory Brown and Levisonpresent a personatry to be accepted/likedbe polite/friendly to others get what we want Can you think of an example of when you have displayed each of the strategies?

Face Brown and Levinson said that everyone has a ‘face’. A view of themselves that they expect to be respected. Anything that goes against this is a FTA – face threatening act.

Grice’s Maxims Quantity – saying too much or too littleQuality – saying something untrueManner – communicating in an obscure way Relation – changing the subject, being irrelevant

Grice’s Maxims Which maxim is being flaunted? After being told it looks like rain, the man replies, “The atmospheric conditions typical of this region are somewhat an obscure branch of meteorology as the air density dramatically alters cloud formations in short spaces of time, causing…”QuantityQualityMannerRelationThe man asked, “Can you tell me what time the train leaves?” I replied, “You really should watch the new production of Hamlet, it’s quite marvellous!” Quantity QualityMannerRelation“Now Laura, have you eaten the chocolate?”“No…” QuantityQualityMannerRelation “ Where’s your homework?” the teacher asked. Jimmy said, “No, reit . Last night, reit, mi nan came over and mi dog wer sick. But that was only the start of it… After mi tea I was supposed to go to footie, but the car broke down…” Quantity QualityMannerRelationAll of the above

The BIG Question: Keywords: Do we say what we mean and mean what we say? What’s happening here? Pragmatics, Implicit, Explicit, Presupposition, Covergence , Divergence Conversation at home: A: We’re about to eat, Sarah (mother shouting upstairs to daughter) Conversation in pub: C: Adam’s mum and dad are cooking a barbeque tonight. Christmas cracker joke: Robert: The police are looking for a man with one eye called John. Ian: What’s his other eye called? Sports Report It stands 18 and a half inches tall. That is 18 and a half inches of glory. And, perhaps not for the last time in his life, Roger Federer has it in his arms.

Minimum Expectation: Challenge Yourself: To analyse pragmatics To understand how pragmatics is important in the construction of spoken and written texts

“ Two blondes walk into a building… You’d think at least one of them would have seen it !” This joke is successful because of the underlying associations we have of ‘blondes’. The stereotypical image is that females with blonde hair are not very intelligent.

19 Deixis Some sentences in English are impossible to understand if we don’t know who is speaking, about whom, where, and when.“You’ll have to bring that back tomorrow because they aren’t here now.”

20 “ You’ll have to bring that back tomorrow because they aren’t here now.”The expressions in red can only be understood in the immediate physical context in which they were spoken. Such expressions, which can only be understood in terms of the speaker’s intended meaning, are called deictic expressions. FREE BEER TOMORROW

21 Reference & Inference “Mr. Kawasaki.”Used to refer to a man who always rode loud and fast in his motorcycle. A brand name is used to refer to a person here. “Can I look at your Chomsky?” “I enjoy listening to Mozart.”This process, where additional information is needed to connect what is said to what is meant, is inference.

22 Antecedent & Anaphora “Can I borrow your book?”“Yes, it’s on the table.” The book and it have a referential relationship. The first mention is called the antecedent. The second and any subsequent reference is called the anaphora.

23 Anaphora “we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender, …” Winston Churchill, 1940

24 Anaphora On April 13, 1990, in Mercedes, Texas, a bat bit the right index finger of a visitor. The man did not seek medical attention till the affected hand began to feel weak. Just six days later he was dead of rabies. Before slipping into a coma, the Texan suffered episodes of rigidity and breath holding; hallucinations; extreme difficulty swallowing; continuous drooling; disorientation; and high fever.

25 Presupposition Speakers design their linguistic messages on the basis of assumptions about what their hearers already know. What is speaker assumes is known by the hearer is called a presupposition.

26 What are the presuppositions in these messages? “Your son is waiting outside for you”“Why did you get late?”“When did you stop smoking?” A lawyer questioning a defendant: “Okay Mr. Chan, how fast were you going when you ran the red light?”

How much do you know about pragmatics? Time to apply your learning to the transcripts you found for homework…

The BIG Question: Keywords: Why don’t we just say what we mean and mean what we say? HIGHWAYS ACT 1980 THE A556(M) MOTORWAY (M6-M56 LINK) AND CONNECTING ROADS (SIDE ROADS) (NO.2) ORDER 1994 THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT hereby gives notice that he proposes to make an Order under section 12, 18 and 125 of the Highways Act 1980, in relation to the A556 (M) Motorway (M6-M56 Link) which will be situated between Over Tabley and Bowden in the County of Cheshire, which will: (1)authorize him to- (a) improve highways. (b) stop up highways. (c) construct new highways, (d) stop up private means of access to premises, (e) provide new means of access to premises, all on or in the vicinity of the route of the Motorway mentioned above, and (2) provide for the transfer of each new highway to the Cheshire County Council :1S highway authority as from the date on which he notifies them that it has been completed and is open for traffic. COPIES of the draft order and the plans referred to in it. and of the environmental statement which the Secretary of State has published in relation to the construction of the new highway to the Cheshire County Council as ……….. Why do you think pragmatics matter in legal documents? Pragmatics, Speech Acts, Locutionary , Perlocutionary , Illocutionary, Presupposition, Anaphora, Deixis , Antecedent, Reference, Inference

Minimum Expectation: Challenge Yourself: to apply our understanding of pragmatics and theory related to pragmatics to different contexts To understand why specific language choices have been made

How do I analyse pragmatics? Keep asking yourself the following questions: What specific language choices have been made based on the social context? How have the language choices impacted production and reception?

Speech Acts - Austin and Searle When we speak, our words are very much affected by the situation, the speaker and the listener. Thus words alone do not have a simple fixed meaning. Locutionary act : saying something (the locution) with a certain meaning in traditional sense. This may not constitute a speech act . Illocutionary act : the performance of an act in saying something (vs. the general act of saying something).  The illocutionary force is the speaker's intent. A true 'speech act'.  e.g. informing, ordering, warning, undertaking. Perlocutionary acts: Speech acts that have an effect on the feelings, thoughts or actions of either the speaker or the listener. In other words, they seek to change minds!

Searle (1969) identified five illocutionary/ perlocutionary points Assertives   : They commit the speaker to something being the case. The different kinds are: suggesting, putting forward . Directives : They try to make the addressee perform an action. The different kinds are: asking, ordering, requesting, inviting, advising, begging. Expressives   : They express how the speaker feels about the situation. The different kinds are: thanking, apologising , welcoming, deploring. Declarations   : They change the state of the world in an immediate way. Commissives   : They commit the speaker to doing something in the future. The different kinds are: promising, planning, vowing, betting, opposing . swearing , boasting, concluding. Can you think of examples of each of the five points?

Speech Acts - Austin and Searle Assertives  : They commit the speaker to something being the case. The different kinds are: suggesting, putting forward, swearing, boasting, concluding. Example:  ``No one makes a better cake than me'' . Directives  : They try to make the addressee perform an action. The different kinds are: asking, ordering, requesting, inviting, advising, begging. Example:  ``Could you close the window?'' . Commissives  : They commit the speaker to doing something in the future. The different kinds are: promising, planning, vowing, betting, opposing. Example:  ``I'm going to Paris tomorrow'' . Expressives  : They express how the speaker feels about the situation. The different kinds are: thanking, apologising , welcoming, deploring. Example:  ``I am sorry that I lied to you'' . Declarations  : They change the state of the world in an immediate way. Examples:  ``You are fired, I swear, I beg you'' .

One of the key functions of pragmatics is when a sentence type is said, yet another sentence type is meant. Has your watch broken? Really means You are late again(Interrogative) (Declarative) Statement Sentence type Pragmatics Sentence type Bus fares are really expensive Declarative Will you get me driving lessons? Interrogative It’s cold in here Don’t you think the music is rather loud? Is that a fashion statement? Your bedroom is a mess. Katie is going in town Saturday night. Isn’t Hollyoaks on the other side? I like takeaways, don’t you? I prefer the red dress on you Those jeans are a bit tight That skirt is a bit short SENTENCE MIX UPS

Look at the conversation below and try and work out what is REALLY being meant by the boss and Kevin. BOSS. Where is that report?KEVIN I gave it to Sarah to put it on your desk yesterdayBOSS. Well I never got itKEVIN. Well, I gave her it to give to you, I wonder what could have happened. BOSS I want to see it on my desk by four this afternoon or else . PRAGMATICS IN THE WORKPLACE Look at this extract from Prelude by Katherine Mansfield. The character is rich and living in the county, of which she is bored. My Darling Nan, Don't think me a piggy wig because I haven't written before. I haven't had a moment, dear, and even now I feel so exhausted that I can hardly hold a pen PRAGMATICS IN LITERATURE Impression of character Words to show this Rich/Snobby Sarcasm Childlike We get a definite impression of the character here. Try to decode the words that give us the pragmatic impression of her. Let’s explore pragmatics in different contexts…

Teachers are some of the greatest users of Pragmatics in society when they write reports on students. Look at the statements below and see if you can work out the true pragmatic meanings . Report Statement Pragmatic Meaning Is a bright and lively member of the class Needs to remain focussed more in lessons Needs to establish a more productive work pattern X is still finding his feet with stable relationships Gives good oral answers in class Needs to elaborate more on key ideas. Attendance has been a worry this year. Can become easily distracted at times. Needs to channel his energy and enthusiasm Needs to apply herself more in lessons Appears to have a broken watch Appears to have an unreliable e-mail for coursework. PRAGMATICS IN REPORTS

C omedians use pragmatics a lot to create dual meaning of words and phrases.Did you put the cat out? It wasn’t on fire. This is using the idiom “putting out” as something that you normally do to a fire. Look at the following and try to see where the confusion or wordplay comes. Statement Punch line Confusion Man: He’ll have to go to a hospital. Woman : A hospital – what is it? Man: It’s a big place with doctors and patients but that’s not important right now. John, I’ve fallen down this hole, quick, call me an ambulance You’re an ambulance, you’re an ambulance. That’s my X Girlfiend What, she had mutant superhero powers? A man was looking in a shop window and said “that’s the one eyed get” So a Cyclops came over and punched him. A man walks into a pub and slips on some poo. Another man comes in and does the same. Man 1 says “I just did that” So man 2 hit him. I hate people who take drugs The police seized 2 kilos of mine last week PRAGMATICS IN COMEDY

MD: Well, Mr A, I believe there are problems on the American site. Why did the supplies not arrive on time?Mr A: Well, Sir, I understand that everything is back on schedule now. It was just a slip-up in the paperwork somewhere. I think Ms B may have more information on that. Ms B: No, I was not actually involved in this deal. I was out of the country last week. I'm not quite sure why Mr A thinks I was.MD : I want some answers here. I'll expect a full report on my desk by 4pm today! What is the MD’s impression of the 2 people here? What does Mr A do when the MD asks for answers? How does Ms B respond to his actions. What is the impression Ms B has of Mr A PRAGMATICS AT WORK A Do you agree with that idea? Why? B Can you build on that idea? C Can you challenge that idea?

Giles’ Theory Convergence – when an individual adjusts his speech to match those in a social group. Emphasises unity, shared identity, a bond.Divergence – when an individual adjusts his speech to be different from those in a particular group. Emphasises separation, withdrawal from a group and boundaries. Softening your broad accent at a posh cocktail party A Chav calling some people leaving a cocktail party “f***in ‘ oity , toity nob ‘ eads!” Which is Convergence?

Digging Deep Read the following conversation. What can you say about it? So now you understand pragmatics. But how far can you take this understanding?

Just remember...Saying: ‘It’s a long time since we visited your mother’ has a completely different meaning when uttered at the coffee-table after dinner in a married couple’s living room in comparison to it being said by the same man to the same wife when they are both standing in front of the hippopotamus enclosure at the local zoo.

The BIG Question: Keywords: How do we apply our knowledge to a text? Pragmatics, Speech Acts, Theory, Locutionary , Perlocutionary , Illocutionary, Presupposition, Anaphora, Deixis , Antecedent, Reference, Inference, Paralinguistic Keep asking yourself the following questions: What specific language choices have been made based on the social context? How have the language choices impacted production and reception? modes of address, phatic tokens and face / politeness tokens . turn-taking/exchanges (adjacency pairs) cohesion conversational success Grice’s maxims: quality, quantity, relevance, manner Paralinguistic features Context (i.e. pragmatics )

Semantic Analysis Pragmatic/Discourse Analysis The teacher has used ‘battle’, a word from the semantic field of conflict to serve as a metaphor for the students’ attempt to answer the questions. This makes the exam into a kind of ‘struggle’ against the examiner and emphasises that some students will be victorious and some will be defeated; however, within this context, the content, being metaphorical, adds a touch of warmth and humour to the start of the exam.The teacher and students are in a hierarchy of power (power which is both instrumental and influential). The teacher’s position in this hierarchy means that the students are unable to answer back. This power differential means that the teacher’s words may sometimes carry more than just their semantic meaning. In this example, the teacher is free to say whatever she or he likes as an introduction to the exam and the pupils are all fully able to infer this from what he says. Look at these examples and at the analyses offered before trying some of your own on text examples from past papers.   (Teacher stands at front of Assembly Hall just before the exam begins): “Let battle commence!”

M: T: N: M: V: M: N: V; T: M: V: T: na (.) the man rinsed you (1.5) ee said your moles alive you know haa , haa ….. Naa (.) that’s dark you know You’ll lips so big (2.0) dat you’ll need batteries to keep you’ll lip dere I don’t give a d you know (1.0) cause your moles so big you’ll gotta carry it in your pocket! [laughter 3.0] Ya mole [laughter 1.5] OH my god my man rinsed ya mole Stop da rinsin now (.) ‘n’ play da game (.) before I’ll dark you’ll up Sorry lip (.) I’ll ask you’ll permission nex time [laughter 4.0] Yeh (.) yeh (.) NICE ONE (.) touch Shut dup ‘n’ (.) play da game Oohs go now? Mine V (.) Is zat you’ll mum I can smell? What’s missing is CONTEXT

Politeness and face: Negative politeness Positive politeness PRAGMATICS Conversation Rules Turn-taking Utterance length Speech acts Back-tracking Back-channelling Meaning in context Cultural Allusions Subtext Implied Meaning Explicit Meaning Co-operative Principle Grice’s Maxims Homework

Progress...Where are you? I understand what pragmatics means but struggle to apply it to a text I can analyse the pragmatics of a text in various contexts and apply theory