Transcript Document

Language use as principle:
The relevance theory approach
Shaozhong Liu, Ph.D. (Pragmatics) / Ph.D. (Higher
Education)
School of Foreign Studies, Guilin University of
Electronic Technology
Homepage: www.gxnu.edu.cn/Personal/szliu
Blog: cyrusliu.blog.163.com
Email: [email protected]
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Synopsis
1. Relevance:communication and cognition
2. Why the RT?
3. What is the RT?
4. The explanatory adequacy of the RT
5. Status quo of the RT
6. References
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1. Relevance: communication and
cognition
• In 1986, Blackwell Publishers in Oxford,
UK, published a book entitled Relevance:
communication and cognition. It was a
monograph co-authored by Dan Sperber
and Deirdre Wilson. The book received
immediate welcome, and was reprinted in
1988, 1990, 1993, 1994, and a second
edition came out in 1995.
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• Dan Sperber
[email protected]
http://www.dan.sperber.com/
• Dan Sperber is a French social and cognitive
scientist. He is the author of Rethinking
Symbolism (Cambridge UP 1975), On
Anthropological Knowledge (Cambridge UP
1985), Explaining Culture (Blackwell 1996).
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In these three books, he has developed a naturalistic
approach to culture under the name of
"epidemiology of representations".
Dan holds a research professorship at the French
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
(CNRS) in Paris, and has held visiting positions at
Cambridge University, the British Academy, the
London School of Economics, the Van Leer Institute
in Jerusalem, the Institute for Advanced Study in
Princeton, Princeton University, the University of
Michigan, the University of Bologna, and the
University of Hong-Kong.
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Dan Sperber is also the co-author, with Deirdre
Wilson (Department of Linguistics, University
College, London) of Relevance: Communication
and Cognition (Blackwell 1986 - Second Revised
Edition, 1995). Dan Sperber and Deirdre Wilson
have developed a cognitive approach to
communication known as "Relevance Theory".
Both the epidemiology of representations and
relevance theory have been influential and also
controversial.
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• Deirdre Wilson
[email protected]
http://www.icn.ucl.ac.uk/members/Wilso86/
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Prof. Deirdre Wilson teaches in the Dept. Phonetics
and Linguistics University College London
Gower Street London WC1E 6BT
Her areas of expertise include: cognitive processes,
semantics, and speech perception. Currently she
is examining into aspects of pragmatics including
the theory and practice of communication and
comprehension, particularly verbal.
Disambiguation, reference, implicature, speech
acts, figurative meanings.
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• Here’s the Contents of Relevance:
communication and cognition:
• Preface
1. Communication ( 1.1 The code model and the
semiotic approach to communication 1.2
Decoding and inference in verbal communication
1.3 The mutual-knowledge hypothesis 1.4
Grice’s approach to ‘meaning’ and
communication 1.5 Should the code model and
the inferential model be amalgamated? 1.6
Problems of definition 1.7 Problems of
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explanation: Grice’s theory of conversation 1.8
Cognitive environments and mutual manifestness
1.9 Relevance and ostension 1.10 Ostensiveinferential communication 1.11 The informative
intention 1.12 The communicative intention)
2. Inference (2.1 Non-demonstrative inference 2.2
Logical forms, propositional attitudes and factual
assumptions 2.3 Strength of assumptions 2.4
Deductive rules and concepts 2.5 The deductive
device 2.6 Some types of deduction 2.7 Contextual
effects: the role of deduction in non-demonstrative
inference)
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3. Relevance (3.1 Conditions for relevance 3.2 Degrees of
relevance 3.3 Is the context given or chosen? 3.4 a choice of
contexts 3.5 Relevance to an individual 3.6 The relevance of
phenomena and stimuli 3.7 The principle of relevance 3.8
How relevance theory explains ostensive-inferential
communication)
4. Aspects of verbal communication (4.1 Language and
communication 4.2 Verbal communication, explicature and
implicature 4.3 The identification of propositional forms 4.4
The identification of implicature 4.5 Propositional form and
style: prepossitional effects 4.6 Implicatures and style:
poetic effects 4.7 Descriptive and interpretive dimensions of
language use 4.8 Literalness and metaphor 4.9 Echoic
utterances and irony 4.10 Speech acts)
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2. Why the RT?
1) Communication models: The Code model
2) Mechanisms in conversations:
• John Austin (1962): Speech as act (Speech Act Theory)
vs. John Searle (1969): Speech as indirect act
• H. P. Grice (1975): Speech as implicating (Cooperative
Principle and suggested topics for further studies)
• Penelope Brown & Stephen Levinson (1978): face want
(of Ideal Man) (Face Theory and sociological and
cultural explanations)
• Geoffrey Leech (1983): politeness in speech (Politeness
Principle)
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3. What is the RT?
1)
•
A novel attempt at explaining verbal communication
Communication as informative intent +
communicative intent
•
Communication as identifying and manipulating
cognitive environments /contexts
•
Communication as encoding + decoding
•
Communication model: Ostention + Inferring
•
Communicative principle of relevance:
Every utterance conveys a presumption of its own optimal
relevance
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2) A novel attempt at explaining human cognition via
verbal communication
• Relevance of a piece of information is in essence
always individual or to an individual in two
manifestations: 1) A piece of information is
relevant to an individual to the extent that its
cognitive effects in the individual are large. 2) A
piece of information is relevant to an individual to
the extent that the effort required to achieve these
effects is small.
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• The cognitive principle of relevance: Human
cognitive processes are aimed at processing the
most relevant information available in the most
relevant way. There is a presumption of
relevance in every verbal cognition in that 1) an
articulated utterance is always relevant enough
to be worth the addressee’s processing effort,
and 2) the utterance is the most relevant one
compatible with the communicator’s abilities
and preferences.
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4. The explanatory adequacy
of the RT
2004/4/26 (second round of the 2004 ma entrance exam)
1). 团结拼搏，共闯辉煌。
United, worked and splendid together.
To unite together and struggle, thus to build excellence
together.
To struggle with one heart, and create fruits together.
Unite, work hard and achieve our ambition.
Unite, fight for the bright!
Strife unitedly and make prosperosity.
Be united and strive for prosperity together.
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Union and drive then create splendid together.
Strike together and make a promising future.
Struggle united and glory together.
Unit and work together to open up brilliant future.
Hanging together and fighting for the same goal—the
prosperous future.
Work hard like one man to fulfill achievement.
Work diligently and solidaritly to make great achievement.
Unite and struggle together to create brilliant achievement.
Unit and strive for a brilliant future.
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2). 回归自然。
3). 班门弄斧。
4). 朝三暮四。
5). 买一送一。
6). Yao Ming is one of the seven-footers among this
season’s NBA players.
7). 打井请call 127-3456781.
8). 恭喜侨迁之喜。
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5. Status quo of the RT
Refer to:
1) RT in China: 20002) RT Biblio via the Google
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The RT at: Scholar.google.com
• 1985: 共約有996,000項查詢結果
• 1986: 共約有1,030,000項查詢結果
• 1987: 共約有1,030,000項查詢結果
• 1988: 共約有1,040,000項查詢結果
• 1989: 共約有1,040,000項查詢結果
• 1990: 共約有1,080,000項查詢結果
• 1991: 共約有1,060,000項查詢結果
• 1992: 共約有522,000項查詢結果
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The RT at: Scholar.google.com
“不限时间”“只包含书目/引用资料”
•1985: 共約有996,000項查詢結果
•1986: 共約有1,030,000項查詢結果
•1987: 共約有1,030,000項查詢結果
•1988: 共約有1,040,000項查詢結果
•1989: 共約有1,040,000項查詢結果
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•
•
•
•
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1990: 共約有1,080,000項查詢結果
1991: 共約有1,060,000項查詢結果
1992: 共約有577,000項查詢結果
1993: 共約有607,000項查詢結果
1994: 共約有546,000項查詢結果
1995: 共約有1,070,000項查詢結果
1996: 共約有1,040,000項查詢結果
1997: 共約有987,000項查詢結果
1998: 共約有983,000項查詢結果
1999: 共約有995,000項查詢結果
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•
•
•
•
•
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•
•
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2000: 共約有1070,000項查詢結果
2001: 共約有919,000項查詢結果
2002: 共約有889,000項查詢結果
2003: 共約有808,000項查詢結果
2004: 共約有742,000項查詢結果
2005: 共約有650,000項查詢結果
2006: 共約有532,000項查詢結果
2007: 共約有411,00項查詢結果
2008: 共約有307,000項查詢結果
2009: 共約有179,000項查詢結果
2010: 共約有365,000項查詢結果
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• 2011: 共約有435,000項查詢結果
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「Google 學術搜尋」快訊: 2011 之後的範例結果
• A Hybrid Theory of Metaphor: Relevance Theory
and Cognitive Linguistics by Markus Tendahl
• FJR de Mendoza Ibáñez - Metaphor and Symbol,
2011
The “feeling” that Relevance Theory (RT) and
Cognitive Linguistics (CL), especially
Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), despite sharp
differences, have enough points in
common to make them largely complementary of
each other is not new. It arises from ...
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• Parallels and differences in the treatment of metaphor
in relevance theory and cognitive linguistics
• D Wilson - Intercultural Pragmatics, 2011
Abstract Both cognitive linguists and relevance
theorists are developing original approaches
to metaphor. Both shed new light on old debates and
suggest fruitful directions for research.
Although there has so far been little interaction
between the two approaches, Raymond ...
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• Relevance theory and citations
• HD White - Journal of Pragmatics, 2011
Relevance theory (RT) holds that the relevance of
communications is determined by their
cognitive effects and the effort needed to process
them. The evidence is usually drawn from
dialogues between speakers and hearers. Selfcommuning scholars and scientists afford ...
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• Wilson & Sperber's Relevance Theory
• B Müller - 2011
GRIN - Verlag für akademische Texte Der GRIN
Verlag mit Sitz in München hat sich seit der
Gründung
im Jahr 1998 auf die Veröffentlichung
akademischer Texte spezialisiert. Die
Verlagswebseite
www.grin.com ist für Studenten,
Hochschullehrer und andere Akade- miker die
ideale ...
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• Relevance theory and unintended transmission of
information
• JM Gil - Intercultural Pragmatics, 2011
Abstract In spite of the epigraph, the Theory of
Relevance has overestimated the importance
of intention in the study of verbal interaction.
Therefore, this prototypical and current
representative of Cognitive-Philosophical
Pragmatics has inconveniently narrowed the ...
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• Broadening and narrowing in lexical
development: How relevance theory can account
for children's overextensions and underextensions
• E Walaszewska - Journal of Pragmatics, 2011
The paper examines the parallels between young
children's overextensions and
underextensions and lexical pragmatic processes
of broadening and narrowing as
described in relevance theory. I argue that cases
of overextension involve the ...
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• On Explanation of Phenomena by Using
Translation Theories: A Comparison Between
Gutt's Relevance Translation Theory and Nida's
Equivalence Theory
• HYF Min - Journal of Xi'an International Studies
University, 2011
... the PDF format. 【Citations】, Chinese
Journal Full-text Database, 3 Hits. 1, Tang
Yongjun;On the Unity of Relevance Theory and
Equivalence Theory in
Translation[J];Foreign Language
Education;2003-06. 2, HUANG Yuanpeng1 ...
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• [PDF] The translation of modifying participles in
scientific discourse from the perspective of relevance
theory
• Là Marcos… - PragmalingüÃstica, 2011
Resumen Este artículo presenta un ejemplo de la
aplicación de la teoría de la Relevancia a
la traducción, y muestra que el modelo de
comunicación ostensivo-inferencial proporciona
una respuesta a la cuestión de equivalencia en
traduccI6n. Hemos usado la teoría de la ...
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• The Cognitive Construction of Conversational
Implicature in Translation From a Perspective of
Relevance Theory——With a Sample Analysis of A
Dream of Red …
• F Hong - Journal of Beijing International Studies
University, 2011
Translation is a typical communicative cognitive
activity, which involves both the
understanding and the construction of cogni-tive
inference. Relevance theory, with its focus
on the relationship between communication and
cognition, is widely accepted as an ...
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• An Exploration of the Pragmatic Model of the
Translation of Public Signs in Scenic Area From
the Perspective of Relevance Theory——
Exemplified by the Stone …
• Z Jie - The Guide of Science & Education, 2011
With an analysis of the characteristics of the
public signs in scenic area, the article attempts
to construct a pragmatic model of translation the
translation of public signs in scenic area at
the basis of relevance theory. This model requires
the translator to gain a thorough ...
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Google 學術搜尋快訊
• “the intitle:"relevance theory" , 2011”
• http://scholar.google.com.hk/scholar_alerts
?hl=zhTW&view_op=create_alert_options&alert
_query=the++intitle:%22relevance+theory
%22+,+2011&alert_params=hl%3DzhTW%26as_sdt%3D0,5&alert_max_results
=20
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6. References
H. P. Grice: Logic and conversation. In Grice (1968/1975):
Studies in the way of words. Harvard University Press.
G. N. Leech: Principles of Pragmatics. London: Longman.
P. Brown and S. Levinson: Universals in language usage:
politeness phenomena. In E. N. Goody (ed.) (1978):
Questions and Politeness: Strategies in Social
Interaction. Cambridge: CUP.
Dan Sperber & Deidre Wilson (1986/1995): Relevance:
communication and cognition. Oxford: Blackwell.
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• Relevance Theory Online Bibliographic Service
• www.ua.es/personal/francisco.yus/rt.html
• Francisco Yus ..... [ref. added 21-7-2004]; Mateo
Martínez, J. and F. Yus (eds.)( 1998) .....
Translation of Wilson and Sperber (2004a) by
Francisco Campillo. ...
Semantics (general); semantics ... - Conceptual
and procedural meaning.
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• RT_Cognitprag
• www.gxnu.edu.cn/.../szliu/RT_Cognitprag.
ht...
• A chronologival bibliography on
Relevance Theory (by Shaozhong Liu &
Fengrong Liao) Ph.D. dissertations related
to RT (by Shaozhong Liu & Fengrong
Liao) ...
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