References. Criticisms of Pragmatics

Criticisms of Pragmatics

Related Fields

There is considerable overlap between pragmatics and sociolinguistics, since both share an interest in linguistic meaning as determined by usage in a speech community. However, sociolinguists tend to be more interested in variations in language within such communities.

Pragmatics helps anthropologists relate elements of language to broader social phenomena; it thus pervades the field of linguistic anthropology. Because pragmatics describes generally the forces in play for a given utterance, it includes the study of power, gender, race, identity, and their interactions with individual speech acts. For example, the study of code switching directly relates to pragmatics, since a switch in code effects a shift in pragmatic force [6].

According to Charles W. Morris, pragmatics tries to understand the relationship between signs and their users, while semantics tends to focus on the actual objects or ideas to which a word refers, and syntax (or "syntactics") examines relationships among signs or symbols. Semantics is the literal meaning of an idea whereas pragmatics is the implied meaning of the given idea.

Speech Act Theory, pioneered by J. L. Austin and further developed by J. Searle, centers around the idea of the performative, a type of utterance that performs the very action it describes. Speech Act Theory's examination of illocutionary acts has many of the same goals as pragmatics, as outlined above.

Some of the criticisms directed at pragmatics include these:

- It does not have a clear-cut focus.

- Its principles are vague and fuzzy.

- It is redundant – semantics already covers the territory adequately.

In defending pragmatics we can say that:

ü The study of speech acts has illuminated social language interactions.

ü It covers things that semantics (hitherto) has overlooked.

ü It can help inform strategies for teaching language.

ü It has given new insights into understanding literature.

ü The theory of the cooperative principle and politeness principle have provided insights into person-to-person interactions.

1. Austin J. L. How to Do Things with Words / J. L. Austin. – Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1962.

2. Brown P. Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage / Penelope Brown, Stephen C. Levinson. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1978.

3. Carston R. Thoughts and Utterances: The Pragmatics of Explicit Communication / Robyn Carston. – Oxford: Blackwell, 2002.

4. Clark H. H. Using Language / Herbert H. Clark. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996.

5. Dijk T. A. van. Text and Context. Explorations in the Semantics and Pragmatics of Discourse / Teun A. van Dijk. – London: Longman, 1977.

6. Duranti A. Linguistic Anthropology / Alessandro Duranti. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997.

7. Grice H. P. Studies in the Way of Words / Herbert Paul Grice. – Cambridge (MA): Harvard University Press, 1989.

8. Handbook of Pragmatics / [Jef Verschueren, Jan-Ola Östman, Jan Blommaert (eds.)]. – Amsterdam: Benjamins, 1995.

9. Laurence R. H. The Handbook of Pragmatics / R. Horn Laurence, Gregory Ward. – Oxford: Blackwell, 2005.

10. Leech G. N. Principles of Pragmatics / Geoffrey N. Leech. – London: Longman, 1983.

11. Levinson S. C. Pragmatics / Stephen C. Levinson. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983.

12. Levinson S. C. Presumptive Meanings: The Theory of Generalized Conversational Implicature / Stephen C. Levinson. – MIT Press, 2000.

13. Mey J. L. Pragmatics: An Introduction / Jacob L. Mey. – [2^nd ed.] – Oxford: Blackwell, 2001.

14. Potts Ch. The Logic of Conventional Implicatures / Christopher Potts. – Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.

15. Silverstein M. Shifters, Linguistic Categories, and Cultural Description / Michael Silverstein // Meaning and Anthropology / [K. Basso, H. A. Selby (eds.)]. – New York: Harper and Row, 1976.

16. Sperber D. Pragmatics / Dan Sperber, Deirde Wilson // Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Philosophy / [F. Jackson, M. Smith (eds.)]. – Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. – P. 468-501.

17. Thomas J. Meaning in Interaction: An Introduction to Pragmatics / Jenny Thomas. – London: Longman, 1995.

18. Verschueren J. Understanding Pragmatics / Jef Verschueren. – London, New York: Arnold Publishers, 1999.

19. Watzlawick P. Pragmatics of Human Communication: A Study of Interactional Patterns, Pathologies, and Paradoxes / Paul Watzlawick, Janet Helmick Beavin, Don D. Jackson. – New York: Norton, 1967.

20. Wierzbicka A. Cross-Cultural Pragmatics. The Semantics of Human Interaction / Anna Wierzbicka. – Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter, 1991.

21. Yule G. Pragmatics / George Yule. – Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996.

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