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On the Subjectivity and Intersubjectivity of Language
Issue:
Volume 6, Issue 1, March 2020
Pages:
1-5
Received:
20 December 2019
Accepted:
2 January 2020
Published:
9 January 2020
Abstract: When uttering a sentence, the speaker not only objectively expresses the propositional content of the sentence, but also conveys his views, feelings and attitudes toward the sentence. The speaker’s imprint is inherent in language. However, due to the dominance of structural linguistics and formal linguistics for a long time, “the speaker’s factor” in language has not been given due attention. With the advent of “linguistic turn” in the 20th century, language has become one of the objects of philosophical research and the significance of “the speaker’s factor” in language has attracted a host of scholars from philosophy, ethics, psychology, linguistics and many other disciplines. This paper firstly explores the mostly-acknowledged definition of subjectivity of language put forward by pioneering linguists, then discusses different approaches to the subjectivity of language from pragmatics, Relevance Theory, cognitive linguistics and Systemic Functional Grammar. Based on the previous research, the paper further explicates the speaker’s subjectivity from three aspects, viz. the speaker’s perspective, the speaker’s affect, and the speaker’s epistemic status. Lastly, the paper probes into the definition and development of intersubjectivity of language and points out that “the speaker’s factor” in language has been and will definitely be a vital topic in the future linguistic research.
Abstract: When uttering a sentence, the speaker not only objectively expresses the propositional content of the sentence, but also conveys his views, feelings and attitudes toward the sentence. The speaker’s imprint is inherent in language. However, due to the dominance of structural linguistics and formal linguistics for a long time, “the speaker’s factor” ...
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The Impact of Visual Metaphor Complexity in Print Advertisement on the Viewer’s Comprehension and Attitude
Issue:
Volume 6, Issue 1, March 2020
Pages:
6-9
Received:
17 September 2019
Accepted:
25 December 2019
Published:
17 January 2020
Abstract: Visual rhetoric is considered a powerful tool of persuasion. It is widely used in political discourse, poetry and advertising language. This study tackles the topic of visual metaphor in print advertisements. It examines visual metaphor complexity on the viewer’s comprehension and attitude. It uses Phillips and Mc Quarrie’s classification of visual metaphor which offers an accurate classification of the different types of visual rhetoric. It distinguishes two dimensions, namely; visual structure and meaning operation. The former refers to the nature of the relation between the two pictures in comparison while visual structure refers to the way the relevant pictures are placed together. The combinations of the two dimensions result in nine types of visual metaphor which are: Juxtaposition/connection, juxtaposition/similarity, juxtaposition/opposition, fusion/connection, fusion/similarity, fusion/opposition, replacement/connection, replacement/similarity and replacement/opposition. The main findings show that complex and rich visual metaphors are more difficult to understand and are not positively perceived by the viewers. In fact, viewers of visual metaphor enjoy solving incongruity and are willing to devote extra efforts in understanding and processing visual metaphor. However, a complex and rich visual metaphor is not very appealing as their complexity will lead the viewers to opt out from enjoying and processing visual metaphor incongruity.
Abstract: Visual rhetoric is considered a powerful tool of persuasion. It is widely used in political discourse, poetry and advertising language. This study tackles the topic of visual metaphor in print advertisements. It examines visual metaphor complexity on the viewer’s comprehension and attitude. It uses Phillips and Mc Quarrie’s classification of visual...
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Asymmetrical Relationship Construction in Medical Interactions - A Case Study of Advice-giving in Mandarin Chinese
Issue:
Volume 6, Issue 1, March 2020
Pages:
10-15
Received:
20 February 2020
Accepted:
4 March 2020
Published:
17 March 2020
Abstract: Social interactions are fundamental components of social life, and we as social members witness and participate in a myriad of social actions and activities. It is in and through these interactions that cultures are established, identities are constructed and relationships are created, maintained or changed. Conversation analysis (CA), as an emergent discipline and research method, is committed to pin down the refined details in social interaction, in the hope to develop systematic knowledge and analysis of what participants in social interactions do and what they achieve. Doctor-patient interaction has long been a much explored topic in CA, but there is still much to be probed into, as talks in the medical context can be a complicated process dependent on many contingencies arising right from that context. This paper adopts conversation analysis as its research method and takes advice-giving in doctor-patient talks as its focus. It is argued that despite the apparently fixed layman-professional relationship in clinical contexts, the professional and lay people relationship is continually created, maintained and adjusted. In medical contexts, a professional’s advice is given with displays of higher epistemic authority, but it may meet with resistances as a result of contingencies in the diagnosis or treatment process. To manage those resistances, a doctor can resort to different practices, including embedding the advice into stories or fusing the advice-giving action into information delivery, and so on. This study aims to contribute to the understanding of dynamic relationship construction and advice-giving practices in medical encounters.
Abstract: Social interactions are fundamental components of social life, and we as social members witness and participate in a myriad of social actions and activities. It is in and through these interactions that cultures are established, identities are constructed and relationships are created, maintained or changed. Conversation analysis (CA), as an emerge...
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