Pragmatics

Question 1

felicitous utterance

Answer 1

situationally appropriate, one that is appropriate relative to the context in which it is uttered.

Question 2

infelicitous utterance

Answer 2

inappropriate to the situation in some way.

Question 3

Cooperative principle

Answer 3

It is assumed that people intend to be cooperative conversational partners.

Question 4

Maxims

Answer 4

principles guiding the conversational interactions of both speakers and hearers.

Question 5

4 categories of maxims

Answer 5

Quality, relevance, quantity and manner

Question 6

Maxim of “quality”

Answer 6

• Do not what say what you believe to be false

- Do not say for which you lack adequate evidence.

Question 7

Maxim of relevance (relation)

Answer 7

Be relevant-maintain the organization of conversation by preventing random topic shifts. Expected to make contributions that pertain to the subject of the conversation.

Question 8

Maxim of quantity

Answer 8

How much information it is appropriate for a speaker to give in a discourse.

Question 9

Maxim of manner

Answer 9

• Avoid obscurity of expression (dont use words or phrases that are difficult to understand)
• Avoid ambiguity
• Be brief
• Be orderly

Question 10

Jargon

Answer 10

Words that the listener cannot be reasonably expected to know.

Question 11

Flouting maxim

Answer 11

says something that in its most literal meaning appears to violate a maxim, but the listener is expected to understand the meaning being conveyed due to the shared understanding of the maxims.

Question 12

Implicature

Answer 12

When a speaker implies something using language.

Question 13

Speech Acts

Answer 13

Actions that are performed only through using language: a term that describes the use of speech emphasizing the speaker’s intention or goal in producing an utterance.

Question 14

Uses for language

Answer 14

convey information, request information, give orders, make requests, make threats, give warnings, make bets, give advice, offer apologies, tell jokes, pay compliments, etc.,

Question 15

Common Speech Acts

Answer 15

Assertion-Conveys information
Question-elicits information
Request-elicits action or information
Order-demands action
promise-commits the speaker to an action
threat-commits the speaker to an action that the hearer does not want

Question 16

Felicity conditions

Answer 16

The circumstances required to render a particular variety of speech act felicitous.

Question 17

Felicity conditions for requests

Answer 17

Purpose of request is to get a task accomplished. Therefore, the speaker believes:

• action has not yet been done
• that the hearer is able to do the action
• that the hearer may be willing to do things of that sort for the speaker.

And the speaker wants the action to be done.

Question 18

Felicity conditions for questions

Answer 18

The speaker does not know the answer to the question.
The speaker wants to know the information
The speaker believes the hearer may be able to supply information.

Question 19

Performative speech act

Answer 19

A speech act that employs a performative verb, in which the particular action named by the verb is accomplished in the performance of the speech act itself.

Question 20

Performative Verb

Answer 20

A verb that denotes a purely linguistic action; a verb that is used to perform the act that it names.

Question 21

Two major requirements for performatives

Answer 21

(i) the subject of the sentence must be first person, I or we, since these speech acts concern the interaction between speakers and hearers
(ii) the verb must be in the present tense, since performative speech acts, like all actions, take place in the present.

Question 22

Direct speech acts

Answer 22

They perform their functions in a direct and literal manner..

a. by making a direct, literal utterance or
b. by using a performative verb that names the speech act.

Question 23

Indirect Speech acts

Answer 23

Utterance that performs its function in an indirect and nonliteral manner.
example: The garbage hasn’t been taken out yet.Could you take out the garbage?

Question 24

Presupposition

Answer 24

an underlying assumption that must be satisfied in order for an utterance to make sense or for it to be debatable.

Question 25

Presupposition triggers

Answer 25

words or phrases whose use in a sentence often indicates the presence of a presupposition.

Question 26

Deictic word

Answer 26

Place holder words. “Yesterday”, “today.”

Question 27

Presupposition Accomodation

Answer 27

accepting of a presupposition that we may not know as fact, but we find plausible. such as an excuse involving a cat, or a car…we dont know for certain our coworker has a cat or car, but we accept it as true.