Ask-A-Linguist Message Details
| Subject: | Semantics or pragmatics? |
|---|---|
| Question: |
Hello, I was wondering which area of linguistics deals with perceived vs. intended meaning of a word. For example, if I say the word ''socialism'', it has certain connotations for me, but my listener might have very different connotations. Would that be semantics or pragmatics? Thank you, Jessi |
| Reply: |
This is a bit fuzzy for a few reasons. Semantics generally refers to literal meaning, and pragmatics to meanings beyond the literal. However, you could have a legitimate argument on what the definition of "socialism" entails, so that is semantics (and yet mixed with pragmatics if someone uses the term to imply other concepts beyond socialism). A less political example might be a term like "cynic" which in general discourse means someone jaded or unoptimistic. A scholar of the Greek philosopy might use it to refer to a practitioner of the original Cynic philosophy. I think some more specific terms that might help would be * frames or frames of reference - how someone metaphorically views the world. Lakoff was a notable proponent of this concept as it relates to political discourse, but it's not without controversy. * genres/discourse styles/jargon - how groups/communities communicate with each other. Drs may communicate one with with patients and another with a colleague. Studies of political discourse do show that people of opposing points of view tend to form distinct discourses (jargons/styles/pragmatics). In many ways, different political parties can be analyzed as slightly different cultures. You would also have to consider how a piece of text/speech was meant to be used. Often, the purpose is to "motivate the base", but not always. Hope this helps |
| Reply From: | Elizabeth J Pyatt click here to access email |
| Date: | 18-Jul-2012 |
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