Diapositiva 1

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Pragmatics Reference and inference
Yule Words themselves do not refer to anything,
people refer
2
Reference is an act in which a speaker, or
writer, uses linguistic forms to enable a
listener, or reader, to identify something
(sesuatu).
3
Reference Is the words we use to identify
things. In discussing deixis, we assumed that the
use of words to refer to people and things was a
simple/trivial matter. However, words themselves
dont refer to anything. People refer.
4
Reference Is an act in which a speaker uses
linguistic forms to enable a listener to identify
something.
5
Linguistic forms are referring expressions.
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Three dimensional diagram Speaker Reference
Intention Listener Inference
Interpretation Pragmatics Sense reference
referent Semantics Word meaning
entity/object
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Semantics Word meaning entity/object Ex
Elephant a big animal which characterized by a
long trunk-
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Semantics Word meaning entity/object
Horse A short haired coat and hoofed
(berkuku) mammal  having a long tail, used for
riding and for carrying loads.-
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• The categories of referring expressions
• Proper nouns
• Pronouns
• Definite nouns
• Indefinite nouns

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• Reference is an act in which a speaker, or
  writer, uses linguistic forms to enable a
  listener, or reader, to identify something. These
  linguistic forms are called referring
  expressions.
• They can be
• proper nouns
• Brasília
  Mr. Faizal

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Reference is an act in which a speaker, or
writer, uses linguistic forms to enable a
listener, or reader, to identify something. These
linguistic forms are called referring
expressions. They can be (b) noun phrases
(definite) The city
The lecturer
12
Reference is an act in which a speaker, or
writer, uses linguistic forms to enable a
listener, or reader, to identify something. These
linguistic forms are called referring
expressions. They can be (c) noun phrases
(indefinite) A
place A man
13
Reference is an act in which a speaker, or
writer, uses linguistic forms to enable a
listener, or reader, to identify something. These
linguistic forms are called referring
expressions. They can be (d) pronouns
It
He, him
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The choice of one type of referring expression
rather than another seems to be based, to a large
extent, on what the speaker assumes the listener
already knows.
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Reference is clearly tied to the speakers goals
and  beliefs in the use of language.
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Yule "it is important to recognize that not all
referring expressions have identifiable physical
referents. Indefinite noun phrases can be used to
identify a physically present entity,  but they
can also be used to  describe entities that are
assumed to exist, but are unknown, or entities
that, as far as  we know, do not exist".
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Examples  a) There's a man waiting for you.
 b) He wants to marry a woman with lots of
money.  c) We'd love to find a nine-foot-tall
basketball player
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Attributive use / referential use a man waiting
for you a woman with lots of money a
nine-foot-tall basketball player This is
sometimes called an attributive use,  meaning
'whoever/whatever fits the  description'. It
would be distinct from a referential use a
specific person is referred to, although his/her
name or some other description is not used.
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For successful reference to occur, we must also
recognize the role of inference. What are
inferences?
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Inferring is connecting prior knowledge to text
based information to create meaning beyond what
is directly stated.
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The role of inference in communication is to
allow the listener to  identify correctly which
particular entity the speaker is referring to. We
can even use vague expressions relying on the
listeners ability to infer what is the referent
that we have in mind.
22
Listeners make inferences about what is said in
order to arrive at an interpretation of the
speakers intended meaning. The choice of one
type of referring expression rather than another
seems to be based on what the speaker assumes the
listener already knows.
23
Words themselves dont refer to anything. People
refer. Because there is no direct relationship
between entities and words, the listeners task
is to infer which entity the speaker intends to
identify by using a particular expression Mister
Aftershave is late today
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"In reference there is a basic collaboration at
work intention-to-identify and
'recognition-of-intention.
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Collaboration This process needs not only work
between one speaker and one listener it appears
to work, in terms of convention, between all
members of  a  community who  share a common
language and culture.
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• YuleOur ability to identify intended referents
• has actually depended on more than our
• understanding of the referring expression".
• It has been aided by the linguistic material, or
  co-text,
• accompanying the referring expression. The
  referring
• expression actually provides a range of
  reference, that
• is, a number of possible referents. In the
  examples
• below, the referring expression 'cheese sandwich
• provides a number of possible referents. However,
  the
• different co-texts lead to a different type of
• interpretation in each case.
• Cheese sandwich is made with white bread.
• The cheese sandwich left without paying.

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Yule The co-text is just a linguistic part of
the environment in which a referring expression
is used. The physical environment, or context, is
perhaps more easily recognized as having a
powerful impact on how referring expressions are
to be interpreted. Reference, then, is not simply
a relationship between the meaning of a  word or
phrase and an object or person in the world. It
is a social act, in which the speaker assumes
that the word or phrase chosen to  identify an
object or  person will be interpreted as the
speaker intended.
28
In English, initial reference is often
indefinite. The definite noun phrases and the
pronouns are examples of subsequent reference to
already introduced referents, generally known as
anaphoric reference,  or anaphora". In technical
terms, the second or subsequent expression is the
anaphora and the initial expression is the
antecedent.
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Example Peel and slice six potatoes. Put them
in cold salted water The initial referring
expression 'six potatoes' identifies something
different from the anaphoric pronoun 'them',
which must be interpreted as 'the six peeled and
sliced potatoes.
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Anaphoric reference
After the initial introduction of some entity,
speakers will use various expressions to maintain
reference In the film, a man and a woman were
trying to wash a cat. The man was holding the cat
while the woman poured water on it. He said
something to her and they started laughing
31
In technical terms, the second or subsequent
expression is the anaphor and the initial is the
antecedent a man ? the man ? he a woman ? the
woman ?she he she ? they
32
When the interpretation requires us to identify
an entity, and no linguistic expression is
presented, it is called zero anaphora, or
ellipsis. Peel an onion and slice it. Drop
the slices into hot oil. Cook for three minutes.
33
Zero anaphora or ellipsis The use of zero
anaphora clearly creates an expectation that the
listener will be able to infer who or what the
speaker intends to identify 1. Peel an onion and
slice it. 2. Drop the slices into hot oil. 3.
Cook ? for three minutes. ? slices, them.
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Yule "the key to making sense of reference is
that  pragmatic process whereby speakers select
linguistic expressions with the intention of
identifying certain entities and with the
assumption that listeners will collaborate and
interpret those expressions as the speaker
intended".
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Yule Successful reference means that an
intention was recognized, via inference,
indicating a kind of shared knowledge and hence
social connection
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Successful reference is necessarily collaborative
(shared knowledge). It allows us to make sense
of the following sentences Picassos on the far
wall My Rolling Stones is missing
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Successful reference means that an intention was
recognized, via inference, indicating a kind of
shared knowledge and hence social
connection. Dont forget Pragmatics is the
study of how more gets communicated than is said.