The taboo exploitation examined in this essay is swearing. Swearing intersects in complex ways wi... more The taboo exploitation examined in this essay is swearing. Swearing intersects in complex ways with the giving and taking of pleasure and concomitantly coping with pain or, conversely, craving to inflict pain. Swearing is normally restricted to colloquial styles because it is commonly perceived to breach the rules of courtesy by offending against standards of good taste and good manners. The breaking of this taboo is an emotional release. Swearing has a special place in our neural anatomy, perhaps accounting for: (a) its effectiveness displaying pleasure and managing pain or the hypoalgesia and other physiological effects in laboratory studies; (b) for the tendency of any disparaging denotation or connotation to dominate the interpretation of the immediate context. I recognize five frequently synchronous functions for swearing from the utterer’s as well as the audience point of view: (i) The expletive function, often marking attitude to what is said. (ii) Abuse, insult, banter. (iii...
The establishment of language as a focus of study took place over many centuries, and reflection ... more The establishment of language as a focus of study took place over many centuries, and reflection on its nature emerged in relation to very different social and cultural practices. Written by a team of leading scholars, this volume provides an authoritative, chronological account of the history of the study of language from ancient times to the end of the 20th century (i.e., 'recent history', when modern linguistics greatly expanded). Comprised of 29 chapters, it is split into 3 parts, each with an introduction covering the larger context of interest in language, especially the different philosophical, religious, and/or political concerns and socio-cultural practices of the times. At the end of the volume, there is a combined list of all references cited and a comprehensive index of topics, languages, major figures, etc. Comprehensive in its scope, it is an essential reference for researchers, teachers and students alike in linguistics and related disciplines.
I explicate the characteristics of a metalanguage for semantics. Next, I review methods for ident... more I explicate the characteristics of a metalanguage for semantics. Next, I review methods for identifying the semantic primes (primitives) which constitute the basic vocabulary of a metalanguage from the seventeenth century and the second half of the twentieth century as background to Anna Wierzbicka's NSM. I offer a short critique of the 'semantic primes' of NSM and the more recent notion of those complexes of primes known as 'semantic molecules'. However, I strongly endorse Wierzbicka's favouring the anthropocentric cognitive approach to semantic analysis. I then turn to a detailed critique of Wierzbicka's (1984) semantics for cup and make a lighter critique of Goddard's (2011) version which, unlike Wierzbicka's, holds closely to semantic primes and marks semantic molecules. I find both versions contain extraneous material and contrast them with versions from Labov (1973) and Katz (1977) as well as the OED before offering my own informal semantics of cup in Standard English.
Common Ground in First Language and Intercultural Interaction
The aim of this essay is to argue that common ground is context shared between S (speaker, writer... more The aim of this essay is to argue that common ground is context shared between S (speaker, writer, signer) and H (audience) under the following conditions: S utters υ, evoking context C1 (the ‘world and time spoken of’) so as to bring about in C3 (the ‘situation of interpretation’ from H’s point of view) H’s understanding υ in terms of the relevant beliefs that S holds or purports to hold in respect of uttering υ (i.e. speaking of C1) in C2 – the ‘world and time spoken in’ – which is the situation of utterance from S’s point of view. If C3 is very different from C2 such that H does not share some of S’s system of beliefs and assumptions, H may be well able to understand what S intended to mean; nevertheless, υ can have reduced comprehensibility and its psycho-social appropriateness may be differently evaluated from the way S expected to be understood: examples would be when a 21st century H reads a sonnet by William Shakespeare or, for another instance, reacts to Jeannie Gunn referring in 1908 to Indigenous Australians as niggers (despite her showing greater respect for their culture and land rights than most of her white contemporaries).
As chapters in these volumes clearly demonstrate, the grammaticalization of temporality varies en... more As chapters in these volumes clearly demonstrate, the grammaticalization of temporality varies enormously across languages. No other language has a construction exactly like the English perfect progressive – which, were it a combination of aspects as some claim, would be self-contradictory. The principal purpose of this chapter is to demonstrate how a proper semantics for the English perfect progressive locates in time the event to which it applies. I examine the origins and meanings of the progressive and the perfect in English. I affirm that the progressive is an aspect and the perfect a tense, even though the perfect does have some aspectual traits. The default meaning of the progressive is that the activity (event) denoted by the predicate in the scope of the progressive operator prog is incomplete at the temporal deictic centre indicated by the tense used in the clause. The perfect is a retrospective tense, a past tense P relative to whatever time point is indicated by the deictic centre for the clause, be it P, N, or F. The perfect progressive locates an incomplete event as retrospective from the deictic centre for the clause. Given these assumptions there is no contradiction in the concatenation perfect progressive, have + been + Ving, such as would seem to arise if the perfect is analysed as an aspect.
The Oxford Handbook of Taboo Words and Language, 2018
Religious ideologies are distinguished from non-religious ideologies but they are closely enough ... more Religious ideologies are distinguished from non-religious ideologies but they are closely enough related that the proverb cuius regio, eius religio should be rephrased cuius regio, eius idealogia with wider application and truth. This chapter elaborates on the names for—and terms of address to—gods and their cohorts, which are comparable with those used for other powerful dominators such as sovereigns and dictators and their courts. All ideological taboos arise from perceived traducing of dogma, and/or insult to revered and/or intimidating persons, institutions, and objects. Focusing (where feasible) on the relevant applicable language, this chapter differentiates and discusses the taboos of heresy, blasphemy, and profanity, exemplifying from the histories and treatment of traitors, heretics, witches, martyrs, blasphemers, and profaners from the time of the Maccabees around 200 bce to the Charlie Hebdo massacre in 2015.
Human beings name things in their environment. The name helps to distinguish and identify the den... more Human beings name things in their environment. The name helps to distinguish and identify the denotatum (thing named) and is essential to communication with fellow humans about such denotata. In Plato’s Cratylus (Plato 1997) c. 385 BCE, Socrates advances the hypothesis that the earliest name-giver (onomatourgos) selected a name that captures the essence of its denotatum, that is in some way iconic as with onomatopoeic bird names like cuckoo or whippoorwill. On this hypothesis the meaning of a word would be ‘natural’ because directly recognizable from the form of the word. Many of the Ancients sought to demonstrate that names are far more descriptive than the facts allow. For example Socrates in Cratylus 406c derives the name Dionusos (god of Bacchanalia) from didous ton oinon ‘giving wine’. In De lingua latina V: 101 (c. 45 BCE) Varro suggests that because the fox is fleet-footed, volpes ‘fox’ is a blend of volare ‘fly’ and pes ‘foot’ (Varro 1938). Isidore of Seville suggested c. 62...
Review of Heim, I. and Kratzer, A. Semantics in generative grammar [Malden, MA.] [Blackwell]; 199... more Review of Heim, I. and Kratzer, A. Semantics in generative grammar [Malden, MA.] [Blackwell]; 1998. p. 324
Singularity and Plurality in English Noun Phrases [: A Study in Grammar and Pragmatics.Keith Alla... more Singularity and Plurality in English Noun Phrases [: A Study in Grammar and Pragmatics.Keith Allan The British Library, Document Supply Centre, 1977.
The Oxford Handbook of Taboo Words and Language, 2018
Taboo refers to a proscription of behaviour for a specifiable community of one or more persons at... more Taboo refers to a proscription of behaviour for a specifiable community of one or more persons at a specifiable time in specifiable contexts. For behaviour to be proscribed it must be perceived as in some way harmful to an individual or their community but the degree of harm can fall anywhere on a scale from a breach of etiquette to out-and-out fatality. All tabooed behaviours are deprecated and they lead to social if not legal sanction. Shared taboos are a sign of social cohesion. This chapter surveys the history of taboo, fatal taboos, uncleanliness taboos, exploitation of taboos, swearing, censoring, taboo as a source of language change, and finally reviews the content of this handbook.
Abductive reasoning is used in figuring out classes, categories, and functions of observed phenom... more Abductive reasoning is used in figuring out classes, categories, and functions of observed phenomena – i.e., arriving at a hypothesis. With abductive reasoning the conclusions are based on a best guess; once predictions are built on the results of abduction, we have induction based on sampling the data. Induction uncovers tendencies, but not certainties; market research is one practical use of induction. Deductive inference is valid when the move from assumptions to conclusions is guaranteed to be consistent by observing strict rules of procedure (identified in systems of logic); the assumptions must be true if the conclusions are to accord with the facts. In linguistic analysis all three kinds of inference are needed. An inference is a reasoned conclusion drawn from one or more assumptions (premises).
The taboo exploitation examined in this essay is swearing. Swearing intersects in complex ways wi... more The taboo exploitation examined in this essay is swearing. Swearing intersects in complex ways with the giving and taking of pleasure and concomitantly coping with pain or, conversely, craving to inflict pain. Swearing is normally restricted to colloquial styles because it is commonly perceived to breach the rules of courtesy by offending against standards of good taste and good manners. The breaking of this taboo is an emotional release. Swearing has a special place in our neural anatomy, perhaps accounting for: (a) its effectiveness displaying pleasure and managing pain or the hypoalgesia and other physiological effects in laboratory studies; (b) for the tendency of any disparaging denotation or connotation to dominate the interpretation of the immediate context. I recognize five frequently synchronous functions for swearing from the utterer’s as well as the audience point of view: (i) The expletive function, often marking attitude to what is said. (ii) Abuse, insult, banter. (iii...
The establishment of language as a focus of study took place over many centuries, and reflection ... more The establishment of language as a focus of study took place over many centuries, and reflection on its nature emerged in relation to very different social and cultural practices. Written by a team of leading scholars, this volume provides an authoritative, chronological account of the history of the study of language from ancient times to the end of the 20th century (i.e., 'recent history', when modern linguistics greatly expanded). Comprised of 29 chapters, it is split into 3 parts, each with an introduction covering the larger context of interest in language, especially the different philosophical, religious, and/or political concerns and socio-cultural practices of the times. At the end of the volume, there is a combined list of all references cited and a comprehensive index of topics, languages, major figures, etc. Comprehensive in its scope, it is an essential reference for researchers, teachers and students alike in linguistics and related disciplines.
I explicate the characteristics of a metalanguage for semantics. Next, I review methods for ident... more I explicate the characteristics of a metalanguage for semantics. Next, I review methods for identifying the semantic primes (primitives) which constitute the basic vocabulary of a metalanguage from the seventeenth century and the second half of the twentieth century as background to Anna Wierzbicka's NSM. I offer a short critique of the 'semantic primes' of NSM and the more recent notion of those complexes of primes known as 'semantic molecules'. However, I strongly endorse Wierzbicka's favouring the anthropocentric cognitive approach to semantic analysis. I then turn to a detailed critique of Wierzbicka's (1984) semantics for cup and make a lighter critique of Goddard's (2011) version which, unlike Wierzbicka's, holds closely to semantic primes and marks semantic molecules. I find both versions contain extraneous material and contrast them with versions from Labov (1973) and Katz (1977) as well as the OED before offering my own informal semantics of cup in Standard English.
Common Ground in First Language and Intercultural Interaction
The aim of this essay is to argue that common ground is context shared between S (speaker, writer... more The aim of this essay is to argue that common ground is context shared between S (speaker, writer, signer) and H (audience) under the following conditions: S utters υ, evoking context C1 (the ‘world and time spoken of’) so as to bring about in C3 (the ‘situation of interpretation’ from H’s point of view) H’s understanding υ in terms of the relevant beliefs that S holds or purports to hold in respect of uttering υ (i.e. speaking of C1) in C2 – the ‘world and time spoken in’ – which is the situation of utterance from S’s point of view. If C3 is very different from C2 such that H does not share some of S’s system of beliefs and assumptions, H may be well able to understand what S intended to mean; nevertheless, υ can have reduced comprehensibility and its psycho-social appropriateness may be differently evaluated from the way S expected to be understood: examples would be when a 21st century H reads a sonnet by William Shakespeare or, for another instance, reacts to Jeannie Gunn referring in 1908 to Indigenous Australians as niggers (despite her showing greater respect for their culture and land rights than most of her white contemporaries).
As chapters in these volumes clearly demonstrate, the grammaticalization of temporality varies en... more As chapters in these volumes clearly demonstrate, the grammaticalization of temporality varies enormously across languages. No other language has a construction exactly like the English perfect progressive – which, were it a combination of aspects as some claim, would be self-contradictory. The principal purpose of this chapter is to demonstrate how a proper semantics for the English perfect progressive locates in time the event to which it applies. I examine the origins and meanings of the progressive and the perfect in English. I affirm that the progressive is an aspect and the perfect a tense, even though the perfect does have some aspectual traits. The default meaning of the progressive is that the activity (event) denoted by the predicate in the scope of the progressive operator prog is incomplete at the temporal deictic centre indicated by the tense used in the clause. The perfect is a retrospective tense, a past tense P relative to whatever time point is indicated by the deictic centre for the clause, be it P, N, or F. The perfect progressive locates an incomplete event as retrospective from the deictic centre for the clause. Given these assumptions there is no contradiction in the concatenation perfect progressive, have + been + Ving, such as would seem to arise if the perfect is analysed as an aspect.
The Oxford Handbook of Taboo Words and Language, 2018
Religious ideologies are distinguished from non-religious ideologies but they are closely enough ... more Religious ideologies are distinguished from non-religious ideologies but they are closely enough related that the proverb cuius regio, eius religio should be rephrased cuius regio, eius idealogia with wider application and truth. This chapter elaborates on the names for—and terms of address to—gods and their cohorts, which are comparable with those used for other powerful dominators such as sovereigns and dictators and their courts. All ideological taboos arise from perceived traducing of dogma, and/or insult to revered and/or intimidating persons, institutions, and objects. Focusing (where feasible) on the relevant applicable language, this chapter differentiates and discusses the taboos of heresy, blasphemy, and profanity, exemplifying from the histories and treatment of traitors, heretics, witches, martyrs, blasphemers, and profaners from the time of the Maccabees around 200 bce to the Charlie Hebdo massacre in 2015.
Human beings name things in their environment. The name helps to distinguish and identify the den... more Human beings name things in their environment. The name helps to distinguish and identify the denotatum (thing named) and is essential to communication with fellow humans about such denotata. In Plato’s Cratylus (Plato 1997) c. 385 BCE, Socrates advances the hypothesis that the earliest name-giver (onomatourgos) selected a name that captures the essence of its denotatum, that is in some way iconic as with onomatopoeic bird names like cuckoo or whippoorwill. On this hypothesis the meaning of a word would be ‘natural’ because directly recognizable from the form of the word. Many of the Ancients sought to demonstrate that names are far more descriptive than the facts allow. For example Socrates in Cratylus 406c derives the name Dionusos (god of Bacchanalia) from didous ton oinon ‘giving wine’. In De lingua latina V: 101 (c. 45 BCE) Varro suggests that because the fox is fleet-footed, volpes ‘fox’ is a blend of volare ‘fly’ and pes ‘foot’ (Varro 1938). Isidore of Seville suggested c. 62...
Review of Heim, I. and Kratzer, A. Semantics in generative grammar [Malden, MA.] [Blackwell]; 199... more Review of Heim, I. and Kratzer, A. Semantics in generative grammar [Malden, MA.] [Blackwell]; 1998. p. 324
Singularity and Plurality in English Noun Phrases [: A Study in Grammar and Pragmatics.Keith Alla... more Singularity and Plurality in English Noun Phrases [: A Study in Grammar and Pragmatics.Keith Allan The British Library, Document Supply Centre, 1977.
The Oxford Handbook of Taboo Words and Language, 2018
Taboo refers to a proscription of behaviour for a specifiable community of one or more persons at... more Taboo refers to a proscription of behaviour for a specifiable community of one or more persons at a specifiable time in specifiable contexts. For behaviour to be proscribed it must be perceived as in some way harmful to an individual or their community but the degree of harm can fall anywhere on a scale from a breach of etiquette to out-and-out fatality. All tabooed behaviours are deprecated and they lead to social if not legal sanction. Shared taboos are a sign of social cohesion. This chapter surveys the history of taboo, fatal taboos, uncleanliness taboos, exploitation of taboos, swearing, censoring, taboo as a source of language change, and finally reviews the content of this handbook.
Abductive reasoning is used in figuring out classes, categories, and functions of observed phenom... more Abductive reasoning is used in figuring out classes, categories, and functions of observed phenomena – i.e., arriving at a hypothesis. With abductive reasoning the conclusions are based on a best guess; once predictions are built on the results of abduction, we have induction based on sampling the data. Induction uncovers tendencies, but not certainties; market research is one practical use of induction. Deductive inference is valid when the move from assumptions to conclusions is guaranteed to be consistent by observing strict rules of procedure (identified in systems of logic); the assumptions must be true if the conclusions are to accord with the facts. In linguistic analysis all three kinds of inference are needed. An inference is a reasoned conclusion drawn from one or more assumptions (premises).
We do not have a copy of the exact text published by Oxford University Press, New York in 1991, b... more We do not have a copy of the exact text published by Oxford University Press, New York in 1991, but this version is very similar. The flaws are mostly very obvious.
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