14.2 Semantic underdeterminacy and pragmatic enrichment
2 min read•july 19, 2024
occurs when a sentence's doesn't fully capture the intended message. This gap between literal and highlights the limitations of semantics alone in determining what a speaker means to convey.
steps in to resolve this underdeterminacy. By considering , , and , listeners can infer the speaker's full intended meaning beyond just the literal words, bridging semantics and pragmatics in communication.
Semantic Underdeterminacy and Pragmatic Enrichment
Definition of semantic underdeterminacy
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- Phenomenon where literal meaning of sentence does not fully capture intended meaning
- Literal meaning insufficient to convey speaker's complete message
- Examples:
- "Can you pass the salt?" (request, not question about ability)
- "I have a million things to do today" (exaggeration, not literal count)
Role of pragmatic enrichment
- Process of using context and world knowledge to resolve semantic underdeterminacy
- Listeners infer intended meaning beyond literal meaning through pragmatic enrichment
- Involves considering:
- Context of utterance (setting, participants, prior discourse)
- Shared knowledge and experiences between speaker and listener
- Conversational principles and implicatures (Gricean maxims)
- Example: "It's hot in here" pragmatically enriched to infer request to open window or turn on air conditioning
Identification of underdeterminacy instances
- Identify semantic underdeterminacy by assessing if literal meaning fully captures intended meaning
- Look for sentences with:
- Ambiguous or vague literal meaning (multiple interpretations possible)
- Heavy reliance on context or shared knowledge for intended meaning
- Potential for different interpretations without additional information
- Examples:
- "I'm going to the bank" (financial institution or river bank?)
- "She's brilliant" (in what way? at what?)
Underdeterminacy in semantics-pragmatics interface
- involves interaction between literal meaning (semantics) and contextual factors shaping intended meaning (pragmatics)
- Semantic underdeterminacy reveals limitations of semantics alone in fully determining meaning
- Semantics provides literal meaning based on word meanings and compositional rules
- Literal meaning may diverge from intended meaning
- Pragmatics crucial for resolving semantic underdeterminacy
- Pragmatic processes like enrichment bridge gap between literal and intended meaning
- Pragmatics considers context, speaker intentions, conversational principles
- Semantics and pragmatics have complementary relationship in constructing meaning
Key Terms to Review (17)
Ambiguity: Ambiguity refers to the presence of multiple meanings or interpretations within a word, phrase, or sentence, which can lead to confusion or uncertainty in understanding. This concept highlights the complexity of language, where context plays a crucial role in determining meaning. Ambiguity can exist at different levels, including words that have more than one meaning, sentences that can be interpreted in various ways, and even larger discourse structures that can shift meanings depending on the surrounding context.
Context: Context refers to the circumstances, background, or setting in which communication occurs, influencing how meaning is understood. It shapes the interpretation of linguistic meaning and speaker intent, making it essential for grasping the nuances of communication and the distinctions between what is said and what is meant.
Contextualism: Contextualism is a philosophical approach in semantics and pragmatics that emphasizes the role of context in understanding meaning. It suggests that the meaning of expressions can vary based on the circumstances surrounding their use, such as speaker intentions, cultural background, and the specific situation. This perspective is essential for interpreting polysemy, reference, propositional attitudes, and the nuanced implications of conversation.
Conversational Principles: Conversational principles are guidelines that speakers typically follow to ensure effective and meaningful communication. These principles help in navigating conversations by promoting clarity, relevance, and cooperation between participants, allowing for shared understanding and contextual inference. They play a significant role in addressing semantic underdeterminacy and pragmatic enrichment, as speakers often rely on these principles to interpret implicit meanings and fill in gaps in the conveyed information.
Explicature: Explicature refers to the process of enriching the literal meaning of an utterance with context-specific information that helps clarify its intended meaning. It plays a key role in understanding how listeners derive meaning from what is said, involving the integration of contextual clues and prior knowledge to form a more complete understanding of a message.
Grice's Maxims: Grice's Maxims are a set of conversational principles proposed by philosopher H.P. Grice, aimed at explaining how people communicate effectively and understand each other in conversation. These maxims, which include Quantity, Quality, Relation, and Manner, help to illuminate how conversational implicatures arise and how speakers often convey meaning beyond the literal interpretation of their words.
H.P. Grice: H.P. Grice was a British philosopher best known for his work in the field of language and communication, particularly for introducing the Cooperative Principle and the associated maxims that govern effective conversational exchange. His theories bridge semantics and pragmatics, emphasizing how speakers often imply meaning beyond the literal words they use, which connects to broader discussions about how meaning is constructed in social interactions.
Implicature: Implicature refers to the meaning that is suggested or implied in communication, rather than explicitly stated. It plays a crucial role in understanding how language functions in context, revealing how speakers convey additional information beyond the literal interpretation of their words.
Intended Meaning: Intended meaning refers to the specific interpretation or understanding that a speaker wishes to convey through their utterance. This concept emphasizes that what is said is often underdetermined by the semantic content of the words used, requiring additional context and pragmatic reasoning to fully grasp the speaker's actual intent. It highlights the interplay between language and context, as well as how listeners actively enrich the meaning beyond the literal interpretation.
Literal meaning: Literal meaning refers to the explicit, dictionary definition of a word or phrase, without any figurative or metaphorical implications. It forms the foundation for understanding language, connecting directly to how words combine to create meaning in context and how different interpretations may arise based on usage.
Metaphor: A metaphor is a figure of speech that implies a comparison between two unrelated things by stating that one thing is another, highlighting similarities between them. This concept plays a crucial role in understanding how we derive meaning from language, as it allows for more expressive and creative forms of communication. Metaphors can also relate to how words can have multiple meanings and shift depending on context, revealing layers of understanding beyond literal interpretation.
Pragmatic enrichment: Pragmatic enrichment refers to the process through which the meaning of an utterance is enhanced or specified by context, allowing for a fuller understanding beyond the literal semantic content. This concept is key in understanding how speakers rely on contextual cues to convey meaning that may not be explicitly stated, influencing debates about language interpretation and the extent to which context affects comprehension.
Semantic underdeterminacy: Semantic underdeterminacy refers to the phenomenon where the meaning of an expression is not fully determined by its semantic content alone, leading to multiple interpretations that can only be resolved through additional contextual information or pragmatic processes. This concept highlights the interplay between what is said and what is implied, emphasizing that understanding language often requires more than just the literal meaning of words.
Semantics-pragmatics interface: The semantics-pragmatics interface refers to the relationship between semantics, which focuses on meaning as derived from language, and pragmatics, which considers how context influences interpretation. This interface highlights how utterances may possess meanings that are not fully determined by their semantic content alone, often requiring additional pragmatic information to derive their intended meanings in specific contexts.
Shared knowledge: Shared knowledge refers to the information, beliefs, and understandings that are commonly held by a group of individuals, allowing for effective communication and mutual comprehension. This concept plays a crucial role in how linguistic meaning is constructed, as it influences interpretation and context within conversations. It is essential for recognizing what is implied, presupposed, or left unsaid in various communicative situations.
Speech Acts: Speech acts are communicative actions performed through utterances, which can convey not only information but also intentions, requests, promises, and other social functions. They highlight how language is not just a means of conveying content but also a tool for performing actions in social contexts, making the relationship between semantics and pragmatics crucial.
Vagueness: Vagueness refers to the lack of precision in language, where terms or expressions do not have a clear or fixed meaning. This can lead to situations where the boundaries of a term are blurry, allowing for different interpretations. Vagueness is crucial in understanding how natural language can be analyzed formally and how context can influence meaning, making it an important concept in semantics and pragmatics.