Interactions between Dynamic Effects and Alternative-Based Inferences in the Study of Meaning

意义研究中动态效应与基于替代的推理之间的相互作用

基本信息

批准号：
AH/V003526/1
负责人：
Yasutada Sudo
金额：
$ 36.12万
依托单位：
University College London
依托单位国家：
英国
项目类别：
Research Grant
财政年份：
2021
资助国家：
英国
起止时间：
2021 至无数据
项目状态：
未结题

来源：
https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=AH%2FV003526%2F1
关键词：
Interactions between Dynamic Effects Alternative

项目摘要

Several open questions exist about how the division of labour between Semantics (the conventional aspect of meaning associated with words and other expressions) and Pragmatics (kinds of meaning that arise due to principles of conversation and general reasoning) is to be understood. Two empirical domains are of particular interest here. First, dynamic effects (DEs): when a linguistic expression affects the interpretation of another one following it, we say that a DE obtains. E.g. in (1) the interpretation of the pronoun "it" is affected by (resolved to) the indefinite "a Ferrari", as it is dependent on it.(1) Bill owns a Ferrari. It is parked outside.Second, alternative-based inferences (ABIs): if a sentence's inference arises by negating (an aspect of the meaning of) an alternative sentence, it is alternative-based. E.g. the scalar implicature of (2) that Helen did not eat both a steak and a salad arises by negating the alternative to (2) with "and" instead of "or".(2) Helen ate a steak or a salad.The two domains have given rise to two similar debates. (i) While there is consensus that both DEs and ABIs involve a combination of semantics and pragmatics, it is controversial what role each one plays. (ii) It is debated whether the characterisation of (1) and (2) and related phenomena as involving DEs or ABIs is correct to begin with. This gives rise to the broader issue whether a dynamic perspective and in addition an alternative-based perspective should be adopted at all. To address debate (i), this project adopts the working hypothesis that indeed one should adopt both perspectives. Based on this it investigates a hitherto largely neglected empirical domain, namely the non-trivial interaction of DEs and ABIs; non-trivial insofar as taking a particular dynamic perspective has immediate consequences for which alternative-based perspective one needs to take and vice versa. As such the theoretical consequences of the combined investigation of DEs and ABIs are profound. Apart from contributing to the individual theoretical debates about DEs and ABIs, it will offer novel and important insights into the nature of the semantics-pragmatics interface. Moreover, the success of such an approach contributes to debate (ii), as it will bolster a view that adopts both the dynamic and the alternative-based perspective. To substantiate the theoretical perspective sketched, the project adopts a broad variety of experimental measures for data collection promising new insights into the debates. Moreover, it extends the empirical coverage of the theory beyond simple spoken language by taking a cross-modal view. It does so by investigating the influence of gesture on DEs and ABIs and their visualisation in sign languages. The novelty and originality of this project thus lie in its empirical focus, both novel and broad at once, the ensuing theoretical implications and the variety of experimental methods used for investigation.

关于语义之间的劳动分裂（与单词和其他表达相关的含义的常规方面）和实用主义（由于对话原则和一般推理产生的意义）如何存在一些开放的问题。这里有两个经验领域特别感兴趣。首先，动态效应（DES）：当语言表达影响后面另一个的解释时，我们说DE获得了。例如。在（1）中，代词“ it”的解释受（解决）不确定的“法拉利”的影响，因为它取决于它。（1）法案拥有法拉利。它停放在外部。第二，基于替代性的推论（ABI）：如果通过否定（含义的一个方面）替代句子而产生句子的推断，则是基于替代的句子。例如。（2）Helen不吃牛排和沙拉的标量暗示是通过用“和“而不是”而不是“或”的替代品否定了替代品，而Helen吃了牛排或沙拉。这两个领域已经引起了两个类似的辩论。（i）虽然达成共识，即DES和ABI都涉及语义和语用学的结合，但每个人扮演的角色都是有争议的。（ii）辩论（1）和（2）和相关现象的表征是否正确。是否应采用动态观点和基于替代的观点，这引起了更广泛的问题。为了解决辩论（i），该项目采用了一个工作假设，即确实应该采用这两种观点。基于此，它研究了迄今为止在很大程度上被忽视的经验领域，即DES和ABIS的非平凡相互作用。在采用特定动态观点的情况下，非平凡的人会产生直接的后果，这是人们需要采取的替代观点，反之亦然。因此，对DES和ABI的联合研究的理论后果是深刻的。除了对DES和ABIS的个别理论辩论做出贡献之外，它还将为语义 - 语法界面的本质提供新颖而重要的见解。此外，这种方法的成功有助于辩论（II），因为它将加强一种同时采用动态和基于替代的观点的观点。为了证实所概述的理论观点，该项目采取了各种各样的实验措施来收集数据收集辩论的新见解。此外，它通过采用跨模式的看法将理论的经验覆盖范围扩展到了简单的口语之外。它通过调查手势对DES和ABIS的影响及其在标志语言中的可视化来做到这一点。因此，该项目的新颖性和原创性在于其经验重点，无论是新颖和广泛的，随之而来的理论含义以及用于研究的实验方法的多样性。