DOCSLIB.ORG

Pragmatic Ambiguity Chapter Five Pragmatic An1biguity

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Pragmatic Ambiguity Chapter Five Pragmatic An1biguity Chapter Five Pragmatic Ambiguity Chapter Five Pragmatic An1biguity 5.0 Introduction Pragmatics is a branch of linguistics, which originally examines the problem of how listeners uncover speakers' intentions (Crystal, 1997: 120). So it studies the speaker's meaning as pposed to the linguistic meaning; pragmatics is the study of relations of signs to interpretations. Bernard (1996) defines pragmatics as the study of how language is used through the interpretation of utterances and their implications. in social contexts. The semantic analysis of a sentence or its referent is not the crucial factor in meaning, the social and physical context refers to the social surrounding while the physical context refers to the place where the dialogue takes place. An utterance requires shades of eanings according ~o the physical or social context. According to Gumpez_.... and Levinson (1990:8) a large part of the burden of interpretation is thus shifted from theories of use in context free lexical and grammatical meaning to theories of use in context. Language is an important part of the culture of a particular group. Language and literature ought to be contextaulized in the matrix of various aspects of the culture and use (Patil, 1994: 14). On the other hand, Malinowsky ( 196-+ : -t.O) believes that all aspects of culture are interconnected and that language is a vehicle of culture. Literature can only be understood and circt•mscribcd by bringing it into a relationship with culture and societal phenomenon. The key concepts of pragmatics are the "Cooperative Principle", (CP) the Politeness Principle (PP) and the Speech Act Theory (SA). The (CP) includes 124 four maxtms: maxtm of quantity. maxtm of quality, maxtm of relation and maxim of manner. There are maxims of conversational management, i.e., they can suggest acceptability of an unerance or the opposite. The PP suggests a kind of consideration between different illocutors. Lakoff supposes three principles for a speaker to continue a conversation properly: don't impose, give options and make the others feel cordial ( 1973: 292). Austin proposes a three­ dimensional phase of an utterance- it may include one or two only. An utterance can bt: only phonetic or a kind of locution. The illocution is an utterance that perfonns something. On the other hand the perlocution is a result of saying something. The mam theme of the study is that of ambiguity. How can ambiguity be applied in pragmatics? The researcher has suggested that the violation of the different principle~of CP, PP and SA creat ambiguity. We often see negotiators talk untruthfully, irrelevantly and ambiguously motivated by politeness. People observe the four maxims of conversation with certain illocutionary or discoursal goals in their minds. Very often the illocutors tel1 lies or ovef'leneralize, critics and writers use metaphors, i.e., they do not speak directly and their utterances can be interpreted in two or more ways. All this represents ambiguity to the hearer or reader or at least an apparent meaning and a hidden one. In Dickens '/ works the different characters' iol ate the principles of CP and PP to show different meanings. For requests one can use a variety of expressions that range from authoritarian as in : 193 . Turn on the fa n. to the most polite one li ke: 125 194. l wonder ifyou dL"~n·t mind turning on the fan . The first OJ1e is used tc"~ express disrespect, anger or restlessness, while the second one expresses cordiality. love and respect. This is expressed indirectly Lakoff ( 1973: 300). Such expressions can also be used to send a massage to a third illocutor. The addressee may get embarrassed or he may not if he has an idea about the tension between the illocutors. la1rectness or indirect speech act ;s an ambiguous utterance: It catTies a hidden goal. Patil ( 1994: 40) believes that the reader "endeaYours to construct a meaning or meanings not only from clear ambiguity ... but from contexts that are themselves constructs of the reader's background knowledge, beliefs and assumptions about the world." That is why a writer like Dickens is not always easily understood even by the native speakers particularly when they are not British and do not belong t? the same age. 5.1 The Cooperative Principle (CP) Linguists have made invaluable efforts in digging the field of language to the extent that they enriched modem human culture with their studies and established different schools of linguistics that were engendered from the tomb of another to make an endless series of linguistic doctrines. The philosophers have also tried their tools in the field of language so as to reveal some of its secrets. So their studies have proved or have gone deeper than those of linguists. They have entered the software of the human brain while the other linguists have touched but the hardware of one may use it (in comparison with the computer system). Grice ( 1975) introduced the CP. It tries to explain the hearer's endeavour to arrive at meaning. Chilten ( 1967:222) remarks that the CP bears ethical and 126 political implications; the commtmicr~tors are rational creatures who belong to a specific culture and consequently to a universal culhlral system. Speaking is a cooperative collaborative act: Speakers ask questions to get information, they promise, request, apologize and wam to get the hearers affected or to make them respond. The utterances could be semantically acceptable. The capacity to produce situationally and contextually appropriate utterances is known as e pragmatic competence (Lakoff, 1973:296). Grice (1975:41-57) established his four famous maxims of pragmatic competence as follows: I. QUANTITY: Give the right amount of information, i.e., 1. Make your contribution as informative as required. 2. Do not make your contribution more informative than is required. II. QUALITY: Try to make your contribution o that is true i.e, 1. Do not say what you believe to be false. 2. Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence. III. RELATION: Be relevant IV. MANNER: Be Perspicuous and not ambiguous or obscure. These principles are ideals of expectation. The rational behaviour is so strong that when we find one of the maxims not being evidently observed, we assume that the speaker IS merely violating or disregarding it 1- Speakers are supposed to supply information that will not violate the maxim of quantity: exactness is a must for advancing a normal conversation. It should be neither more nor less hat is required in a pmiicular society and particular .- situation. 2- The maxim of quality supposes that the locutioner should be true. Telling lies means violating this maxim and hides some intentions behind. The maxim of relation calls for relevance, which is a matter of coherence. Violating it might ca11 for fun or anger. The maxim of manner calls for avoiding 127 vagueness \Yhen talking about l'('mprehensible facts. 3- The social context enables the illocutioners to address each other in appropriate ways. 4- The availability of linguistic de,·i.: es may provide ready-made linguistic expressions but in many cases of culmre specific, culture-bound concepts-etc, they are lacking. 5- The cooperari,·e principle assumes the speakers desire to try to cooperate by telling the truth dearly; telling what is relevant and, what is formative as well. (Thorat, 2000: 161) . Participants in a conversation must agree implicitly on an orderly method for talking, so each participant should have a chance to talk. The other fact is that only one person talks at a time and the gaps between turns should not be long. In addition, time allotted for each participant should not be determined beforehand. If they observe these methods then they are cooperative. Requirements lead to a system of tum-taking. The turns alternate between the participants and this decides that cooperation of the interlocutors. One must tell that closing the conversation is not a simple matter. The addresser and addressee have ended their conversation by mutual agreement. According to the reality principle, listeners interpret sentences in the belief that the speaker is referring to a situation or set of ideas they can make sense of. In this way, listeners can build up an internal model of that situation step by step. The real ity principle is so powerful that it can help listeners rule out ambiguities and avoid misunderstand ing. Hearers make use of the cooperJtive principle to interpret the utterances in the belief that the speaker is tryin g to tell what is relevant or true, relevant and unambiguous. The consequences of the principle are potentially far-reaching: these assumptions enable the hearer to realize the interpretation th e speaker has intended. 128 5.1.1 Violation of the Quality Principle People often try to be truthful. but circumstances oblige them not to do so. People tell li es as a defense mechanism. They us e other devices of indirect language so as to aYoid being held responsible. So they say what they want to say in several ways like: 5.1.1.1 Telling lies To avoid any embanassment and accusation sometimes, people lie. Such a device is often meant and practised in real life. It is always found in famous novels and stories.. Sometimes lies cause people to laugh when they know the situation · several times the) lead to great trouble either to the speaker or hearer. The maxim of quality is \·iolated if the speaker does not say the truth. There is always a reason or intention behind that. Lying, like aggravating language, can be studied systematically. It is not irrational, but has a social function to do. Some lies save the face of the speaker and protect him.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Semantics and Pragmatics
    Semantics and Pragmatics Christopher Gauker Semantics deals with the literal meaning of sentences. Pragmatics deals with what speakers mean by their utterances of sentences over and above what those sentences literally mean. However, it is not always clear where to draw the line. Natural languages contain many expressions that may be thought of both as contributing to literal meaning and as devices by which speakers signal what they mean. After characterizing the aims of semantics and pragmatics, this chapter will set out the issues concerning such devices and will propose a way of dividing the labor between semantics and pragmatics. Disagreements about the purview of semantics and pragmatics often concern expressions of which we may say that their interpretation somehow depends on the context in which they are used. Thus: • The interpretation of a sentence containing a demonstrative, as in “This is nice”, depends on a contextually-determined reference of the demonstrative. • The interpretation of a quantified sentence, such as “Everyone is present”, depends on a contextually-determined domain of discourse. • The interpretation of a sentence containing a gradable adjective, as in “Dumbo is small”, depends on a contextually-determined standard (Kennedy 2007). • The interpretation of a sentence containing an incomplete predicate, as in “Tipper is ready”, may depend on a contextually-determined completion. Semantics and Pragmatics 8/4/10 Page 2 • The interpretation of a sentence containing a discourse particle such as “too”, as in “Dennis is having dinner in London tonight too”, may depend on a contextually determined set of background propositions (Gauker 2008a). • The interpretation of a sentence employing metonymy, such as “The ham sandwich wants his check”, depends on a contextually-determined relation of reference-shifting.
    [Show full text]
  • Pragmatics Is a Systematic Way of Explaining Language Use in Context
    Pragmatics is a systematic way of explaining language use in context. It seeks to explain aspects of meaning which cannot be found in the plain sense of words or structures, as explained by semantics. As a field of language study, pragmatics is fairly new. Its origins lie in philosophy of language and the American philosophical school of pragmatism. As a discipline within language science, its roots lie in the work of (Herbert) Paul Grice on conversational implicature and the cooperative principle, and on the work of Stephen Levinson, Penelope Brown and Geoff Leech on politeness. We can illustrate how pragmatics works by an example from association football (and other field sports). It sometimes happens that a team-mate will shout at me: “Man on!” Semantic analysis can only go so far with this phrase. For example, it can elicit different lexical meanings of the noun “man” (mankind or the human race, an individual person, a male person specifically) and the preposition “on” (on top of, above, or other relationships as in “on fire”, “on heat”, “on duty”, “on the fiddle” or “on the telly”). And it can also explain structural meaning, and account for the way this phrase works in longer sequences such as the “first man on the moon”, “a man on the run” or “the man on top of the Clapham omnibus”. We use language all the time to make things happen. We ask someone to pass the salt or marry us - not, usually at the same time. We order a pizza or make a dental appointment. Speech acts include asking for a glass of beer, promising to drink the beer, threatening to drink more beer, ordering someone else to drink some beer, and so on.
    [Show full text]
  • A Pragmatics-Based Approach to Understanding
    A PRAGMATIC~BASED APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING INTERS~NTENTIAL ~LIPSI~ Sandra Car berry Department of Computer and Information Science University of Delaware Nevark, Delaware 19715, U3A ABSTRACT S~A~R-I : "The Korean Jet shot down by the Soviets was a spy plane." IntersententAal eAlipti caA utterances occur frequently in information-seeking dielogues. This FI: "With 269 people on board?"~ paper presents a pragmatics-based framework for F2: "With infrared cameras on board?" interpreting such utterances, ~ncluding identAfi- cation of the spoa~r' s discourse ~oel in employ- Previous research on ellipsis has neglected to ing the fra~ent. We claim that the advantage of address the speaker's discourse Eoals in employing this approach is its reliance upon pragmatic the frasment but reel understanding requires that information, including discourse content and these be identified (Mann, Moore, and Levin, 1977) conversational goals, rather than upon precise (Webber, PoZlack, and Hirschberg, 1982). representations of the preceding utterance alone. In this paper, we investlgate a framework for interpreting Intersententlal ellipsis that occurs INTRODOCTION in task-orlented dialogues. This framework includes: The fraRmentary utterances that are common in communication between humans also occur in man- [1] a context mechanism (Carberry, 1983) that Nachi~e OOmmUlLCcation. Humans perslat in using builds the information-seeker, s underlying abbreviated statements and queries, even in the plan as the dialogue progresses and differen- presence o/ explicit and repeated instructions to tiates be~een local and global contexts. adhere to syntactically and semantically complete sentences (Carbonell, 1983) • Thus a robust [2] a discourse component that controls the natural langua@e interface must handle ellipsis.
    [Show full text]
  • Two-Dimensionalism: Semantics and Metasemantics
    Two-Dimensionalism: Semantics and Metasemantics YEUNG, \y,ang -C-hun ...:' . '",~ ... ~ .. A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Philosophy In Philosophy The Chinese University of Hong Kong January 2010 Abstract of thesis entitled: Two-Dimensionalism: Semantics and Metasemantics Submitted by YEUNG, Wang Chun for the degree of Master of Philosophy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong in July 2009 This ,thesis investigates problems surrounding the lively debate about how Kripke's examples of necessary a posteriori truths and contingent a priori truths should be explained. Two-dimensionalism is a recent development that offers a non-reductive analysis of such truths. The semantic interpretation of two-dimensionalism, proposed by Jackson and Chalmers, has certain 'descriptive' elements, which can be articulated in terms of the following three claims: (a) names and natural kind terms are reference-fixed by some associated properties, (b) these properties are known a priori by every competent speaker, and (c) these properties reflect the cognitive significance of sentences containing such terms. In this thesis, I argue against two arguments directed at such 'descriptive' elements, namely, The Argument from Ignorance and Error ('AlE'), and The Argument from Variability ('AV'). I thereby suggest that reference-fixing properties belong to the semantics of names and natural kind terms, and not to their metasemantics. Chapter 1 is a survey of some central notions related to the debate between descriptivism and direct reference theory, e.g. sense, reference, and rigidity. Chapter 2 outlines the two-dimensional approach and introduces the va~ieties of interpretations 11 of the two-dimensional framework.
    [Show full text]
  • Modeling Scope Ambiguity Resolution As Pragmatic Inference: Formalizing Differences in Child and Adult Behavior K.J
    Modeling scope ambiguity resolution as pragmatic inference: Formalizing differences in child and adult behavior K.J. Savinelli, Gregory Scontras, and Lisa Pearl fksavinel, g.scontras, lpearlg @uci.edu University of California, Irvine Abstract order of these elements in the utterance (i.e., Every precedes n’t). In contrast, for the inverse scope interpretation in (1b), Investigations of scope ambiguity resolution suggest that child behavior differs from adult behavior, with children struggling this isomorphism does not hold, with the scope relationship to access inverse scope interpretations. For example, children (i.e., : scopes over 8) opposite the linear order of the ele- often fail to accept Every horse didn’t succeed to mean not all ments in the utterance. Musolino hypothesized that this lack the horses succeeded. Current accounts of children’s scope be- havior involve both pragmatic and processing factors. Inspired of isomorphism would make the inverse scope interpretation by these accounts, we use the Rational Speech Act framework more difficult to access. In line with this prediction, Conroy to articulate a formal model that yields a more precise, ex- et al. (2008) found that when adults are time-restricted, they planatory, and predictive description of the observed develop- mental behavior. favor the surface scope interpretation. We thus see a potential Keywords: Rational Speech Act model, pragmatics, process- role for processing factors in children’s inability to access the ing, language acquisition, ambiguity resolution, scope inverse scope. Perhaps children, with their still-developing processing abilities, can’t allocate sufficient processing re- Introduction sources to reliably access the inverse scope interpretation. If someone says “Every horse didn’t jump over the fence,” In addition to this processing factor, Gualmini et al.
    [Show full text]
  • Scope Ambiguity in Syntax and Semantics
    Scope Ambiguity in Syntax and Semantics Ling324 Reading: Meaning and Grammar, pg. 142-157 Is Scope Ambiguity Semantically Real? (1) Everyone loves someone. a. Wide scope reading of universal quantifier: ∀x[person(x) →∃y[person(y) ∧ love(x,y)]] b. Wide scope reading of existential quantifier: ∃y[person(y) ∧∀x[person(x) → love(x,y)]] 1 Could one semantic representation handle both the readings? • ∃y∀x reading entails ∀x∃y reading. ∀x∃y describes a more general situation where everyone has someone who s/he loves, and ∃y∀x describes a more specific situation where everyone loves the same person. • Then, couldn’t we say that Everyone loves someone is associated with the semantic representation that describes the more general reading, and the more specific reading obtains under an appropriate context? That is, couldn’t we say that Everyone loves someone is not semantically ambiguous, and its only semantic representation is the following? ∀x[person(x) →∃y[person(y) ∧ love(x,y)]] • After all, this semantic representation reflects the syntax: In syntax, everyone c-commands someone. In semantics, everyone scopes over someone. 2 Arguments for Real Scope Ambiguity • The semantic representation with the scope of quantifiers reflecting the order in which quantifiers occur in a sentence does not always represent the most general reading. (2) a. There was a name tag near every plate. b. A guard is standing in front of every gate. c. A student guide took every visitor to two museums. • Could we stipulate that when interpreting a sentence, no matter which order the quantifiers occur, always assign wide scope to every and narrow scope to some, two, etc.? 3 Arguments for Real Scope Ambiguity (cont.) • But in a negative sentence, ¬∀x∃y reading entails ¬∃y∀x reading.
    [Show full text]
  • Pragmatics and Grammar: Motivation and Control Robert A
    Work Papers of the Summer Institute of Linguistics, University of North Dakota Session Volume 32 Article 3 1988 Pragmatics and grammar: Motivation and control Robert A. Dooley SIL-UND Follow this and additional works at: https://commons.und.edu/sil-work-papers Recommended Citation Dooley, Robert A. (1988) "Pragmatics and grammar: Motivation and control," Work Papers of the Summer Institute of Linguistics, University of North Dakota Session: Vol. 32 , Article 3. DOI: 10.31356/silwp.vol32.03 Available at: https://commons.und.edu/sil-work-papers/vol32/iss1/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by UND Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Work Papers of the Summer Institute of Linguistics, University of North Dakota Session by an authorized editor of UND Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PRAGMATICS AND GRAIUIAR.: HOTIVATIOII AND OOIITROL Robert A. Dooley 1 Introduction 2 Pragmatics in relation to semantics and syntax 2.1 Early definitions of pragmatics 2.2 The interface between pragmatics and semantics 2.3 The interface between pragmatics and syntax 2.4 Externally motivated phenomena encoded by grammar 2.5 Types of interaction between grammar and pragmatics 3 Pragmatic phenomena with little or no grammaticalization 3.1 Mbya hearsay particle 3.2 Wayampi main clause word order 4 Pragmatic phenomena with partial grammaticalization 4.1 Mbya future marker 4.2 Hixkaryana hearsay particle 4.3 Hixkaryana afterthought elements 5 Pragmatic phenomena with more or less complete grammaticalization 5.1 English WR-clefts 5.2 Dutch auxiliary placement 6 Concluding remarks I Introduction Much of what has been done as "pragmatics" has dealt with utterance interpretation, that is, with the influence of context on meaning.
    [Show full text]
  • On the Logic of Two-Dimensional Semantics
    Matrices and Modalities: On the Logic of Two-Dimensional Semantics MSc Thesis (Afstudeerscriptie) written by Peter Fritz (born March 4, 1984 in Ludwigsburg, Germany) under the supervision of Dr Paul Dekker and Prof Dr Yde Venema, and submitted to the Board of Examiners in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MSc in Logic at the Universiteit van Amsterdam. Date of the public defense: Members of the Thesis Committee: June 29, 2011 Dr Paul Dekker Dr Emar Maier Dr Alessandra Palmigiano Prof Dr Frank Veltman Prof Dr Yde Venema Abstract Two-dimensional semantics is a theory in the philosophy of language that pro- vides an account of meaning which is sensitive to the distinction between ne- cessity and apriority. Usually, this theory is presented in an informal manner. In this thesis, I take first steps in formalizing it, and use the formalization to present some considerations in favor of two-dimensional semantics. To do so, I define a semantics for a propositional modal logic with operators for the modalities of necessity, actuality, and apriority that captures the relevant ideas of two-dimensional semantics. I use this to show that some criticisms of two- dimensional semantics that claim that the theory is incoherent are not justified. I also axiomatize the logic, and compare it to the most important proposals in the literature that define similar logics. To indicate that two-dimensional semantics is a plausible semantic theory, I give an argument that shows that all theorems of the logic can be philosophically justified independently of two-dimensional semantics. Acknowledgements I thank my supervisors Paul Dekker and Yde Venema for their help and encour- agement in preparing this thesis.
    [Show full text]
  • The Ambiguous Nature of Language
    International J. Soc. Sci. & Education 2017 Vol.7 Issue 4, ISSN: 2223-4934 E and 2227-393X Print The Ambiguous Nature of Language By Mohammad Awwad Applied Linguistics, English Department, Lebanese University, Beirut, LEBANON. [email protected] Abstract Linguistic ambiguity is rendered as a problematic issue since it hinders precise language processing. Ambiguity leads to a confusion of ideas in the reader’s mind when he struggles to decide on the precise meaning intended behind an utterance. In the literature relevant to the topic, no clear classification of linguistic ambiguity can be traced, for what is considered syntactic ambiguity, for some linguists, falls under pragmatic ambiguity for others; what is rendered as lexical ambiguity for some linguists is perceived as semantic ambiguity for others and still as unambiguous to few. The problematic issue, hence, can be recapitulated in the abstruseness hovering around what is linguistic ambiguity, what is not, and what comprises each type of ambiguity in language. The present study aimed at propounding lucid classification of ambiguity types according to their function in context by delving into ambiguity types which are displayed in English words, phrases, clauses, and sentences. converges in an attempt to disambiguate English language structures, and thus provide learners with a better language processing outcome and enhance teachers with a more facile and lucid teaching task. Keywords: linguistic ambiguity, language processing. 1. Introduction Ambiguity is derived from ‘ambiagotatem’ in Latin which combined ‘ambi’ and ‘ago’ each word meaning ‘around’ or ‘by’ (Atlas,1989) , and thus the concept of ambiguity is hesitation, doubt, or uncertainty and that concept associated the term ‘ambiguous’ from the first usage until the most recent linguistic definition.
    [Show full text]
  • Names, Descriptions, and Pragmatics
    H I LL IN I S UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN PRODUCTION NOTE University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library Large-scale Digitization Project, 2007. 3-2~/= b T i T E C HR NE Technical Report No. 7 I cP Names, Descriptions, and Pragmatics I A 0 Andrew Ortony LR T February 1976 S LABORATORY for COGNITIVE STUDIES THE LWIRARY OF THE in OCT 7 1981 EDUCATION UNIVLK,'I l ur ILLINUIS AT U TA o•A 'PAIGN "c~c~nell,uWi0 lo/4oY4 inCa w/&t(anal%-IAan6 amyan Technical Report No. 7 Names, Descriptions, and Pragmatics I Andrew Ortony February 1976 University of Illinois Laboratory for Cognitive Studies in Education 236 Education Building Urbana, Illinois 61801 The research described herein was supported in part by the National Institute of Education under Grant No. HEW NIE-G-74-0007. A reasonable expectation of a fully-fledged theory of reference in natural language would be that it provide at least a basis for determining, in any particular occurrence of a referring expression, a name or descrip- tion, what function that referring expression is being used to perform. No theory is able to determine whether (1) is true or false, even given the truth of (2) and (3). (1) Oedipus wanted to marry his mother. (2) Oedipus wanted to marry Jocasta. (3) Jocasta was the mother of Oedipus. Now the reason that no theory can determine whether (1) is entailed by the conjunction of (2) and (3) is that the description "his mother" in (1) occurs in a referentially opaque context.
    [Show full text]
  • Fuzziness-Vagueness-Generality-Ambiguity. Journal of Pragmatics (Elsevier Science B.V
    Fuzziness-vagueness-generality-ambiguity. Journal of Pragmatics (Elsevier Science B.V. in New York & Amsterdam), 1998, 29 (1): pp 13-31. Fuzziness---Vagueness---Generality---Ambiguity1 Qiao Zhang Published by Journal of Pragmatics (Elsevier Science B.V. in New York & Amsterdam), 1998, 29(1): pp 13-31. Contact: Dr Grace Zhang Department of Languages and Intercultural Education Curtin University of Technology GPO Box 1987 Perth, Western Australia 6845 Australia Tel: +61 8 9266 3478 Fax: +61 8 9266 4133 Email: [email protected] Abstract In this paper, I attempt to distinguish four linguistic concepts: fuzziness, vagueness, generality and ambiguity. The distinction between the four concepts is a significant matter, both theoretically and practically. Several tests are discussed from the perspectives of semantics, syntax and pragmatics. It is my contention that fuzziness, vagueness, and generality are licensed by Grice's Co-operative Principle, i.e. they are just as important as precision in language. I conclude that generality, vagueness, and fuzziness are under-determined, and ambiguity is over-determined. Fuzziness differs from generality, vagueness, and ambiguity in that it is not simply a result of a one-to- many relationship between a general meaning and its specifications; nor a list of possible related interpretations derived from a vague expression; nor a list of unrelated meanings denoted by an ambiguous expression. Fuzziness is inherent in the sense that it has no clear-cut referential boundary, and is not resolvable with resort to context, as opposed to generality, vagueness, and ambiguity, which may be contextually eliminated. It is also concluded that fuzziness is closely involved with language users' judgments.
    [Show full text]
  • Analyticity, Necessity and Belief Aspects of Two-Dimensional Semantics
    !"# #$%"" &'( ( )#"% * +, %- ( * %. ( %/* %0 * ( +, %. % +, % %0 ( 1 2 % ( %/ %+ ( ( %/ ( %/ ( ( 1 ( ( ( % "# 344%%4 253333 #6#787 /0.' 9'# 86' 8" /0.' 9'# 86' (#"8'# Analyticity, Necessity and Belief Aspects of two-dimensional semantics Eric Johannesson c Eric Johannesson, Stockholm 2017 ISBN print 978-91-7649-776-0 ISBN PDF 978-91-7649-777-7 Printed by Universitetsservice US-AB, Stockholm 2017 Distributor: Department of Philosophy, Stockholm University Cover photo: the water at Petite Terre, Guadeloupe 2016 Contents Acknowledgments v 1 Introduction 1 2 Modal logic 7 2.1Introduction.......................... 7 2.2Basicmodallogic....................... 13 2.3Non-denotingterms..................... 21 2.4Chaptersummary...................... 23 3 Two-dimensionalism 25 3.1Introduction.......................... 25 3.2Basictemporallogic..................... 27 3.3 Adding the now operator.................. 29 3.4Addingtheactualityoperator................ 32 3.5 Descriptivism ......................... 34 3.6Theanalytic/syntheticdistinction............. 40 3.7 Descriptivist 2D-semantics .................. 42 3.8 Causal descriptivism ..................... 49 3.9Meta-semantictwo-dimensionalism............. 50 3.10Epistemictwo-dimensionalism................ 54
    [Show full text]