Various Definitions of Pragmatics
Morris
the study of the relations of signs to interpreters (1938)
deals with the origin, uses, and effects of signs within the behaviour
in which they occur (1946)
Carnapp
an investigation of meaning where explicit reference is made to the
speaker, or, to put it more general terms, to the user of the language
(1942)
Levinson (1983) The study of those relations between language and context that are
grammaticalized or encoded in the structure of language (p.9)
The study of the relations between language and context that are
basic to an account of language understanding (p.21)
The study of the ability of language users to pair sentences with the
contexts in which they would be appropriate (p.24)
Leech (1983)
Studies meaning in relation to speech situation (p.13)
Thomas (1995)
The study of “meaning in interaction” where meaning is interpreted
as “not something which is inherent in the word alone, nor is it
produced by the speaker alone, nor by the hearer alone …[because]
[m]aking meaning is a dynamic process, involving the negotiation of
meaning between speaker and hearer, the context of utterance
(physical, social, and linguistic), and the meaning potential of an
utterance.
Green (1996)
The study of understanding intentional human action …which must
include belief, intention (goal), plan, and act (p.2)
Yule (1996)
Is the study of speaker meaning.
Is the study of contextual meaning.
Is the study of how more gets communicated than is said.
Is the study of the expression of relative distance.
Clark (1996)
The study of language use …[which has to be viewed] as joint
actions built on individual actions
Verschueren
(1999)
The study of linguistic phenomena from the point of view of their
usage properties and processes (p.1)
Pragmatics does not constitute an additional component of theory of
language, but it offers a different perspective (p.2) …[which includes]
…cognitive, social, and cultural perspectives on linguistic phenomena
in relation to their usage in forms of behaviour (p.7).
Cruse (2000)
[is] concerned with aspects of information (in the widest sense)
conveyed through language which (a) are not encoded by generally
accepted convention in the linguistic forms used, but which (b) none
the less arise naturally out of and depend on the meanings
conventionally encoded in the linguistic forms used, taken in
conjunction, with the context in which the forms are used (p.16)
Huang (2007)
Is the systematic study of meaning by virtue of, or dependent on, the
use of language. The central topic of inquiry of pragmatics include
implicature, presupposition, speech acts, and deixes (2)
Aziz (2010)
The study of linguistic meaning as intended by speaker S and
interpreted by hearer H, uttered in context C by using utterances U in
language L.
Included into context are setting, the world spoken of, and textual
environment.
Pre-requisites for a meaning to be interpretable reasonably:
• Speaker S and hearer H must have such similar properties as being
normal persons, reasonable, and having no personal idiosyncrasies.
• Speaker S and hearer H must share a similar language of relative
competence.
• The dynamics of context are likely to be subject to cultural
interpretations, and, in an attempt of deriving interpretations, it
may involve prosody such as tone, intonation, and gestures.
Isn’t it complicated what people
have said about one effort, i.e
Defining PRAGMATICS
But…Don’t worry, mates!!! You
are at good hands of the
Pragmatics Ranger.