George Yule: Words themselves do not refer to anything, people refer. We might think of reference as an act in which a speaker, writer, or

user linguistic form to enable a lister or reader, to identify something

Pragmatic Reference and Inference

Febri Ari Sandi 11310010

• Reference is the words we use to identify things are in some direct relationship to those things. In discussing deixis, we assumed that the use of words to refer to people and things was a simple matter.However, words themselves don’t refer to anything. People refer.

Reference: act in which a speaker/ writer uses linguistic forms to enable a listener/ reader to identify something (‘words don't refer, people do’).

Reference

George Yule: Reference as an act in which a speaker, writer, or user linguistic form to

enable a lister or reader, to identify something. Those linguistic forms are

referring expressions

Linguistic froms = Referring Expressions

The categories of referring expressions

1. Proper Nouns“Ed Sheeran”“Yule” “Hawaii”

2. Definate Noun Phrases“The Author” “The Island”

4. Pronouns“she” “he”“them

Referring Expressions

The choice of expression depends largely on what the speaker assumes the listener already knows (in shared visual contexts -> deictic expressions)

1. Proper Nouns

Raja Ampat Zahraa

Referring Expressions can be:

2. Definate Noun Phrases

The City The student

Referring Expressions can be:3. Indenfinate Noun Phrases

A place A women

It

4. Pronouns

She, her

The choice of one type of referring expression rather than another seems to be based, to a large extent, on what the speaker assumes the listener already knows. Reference is clearly tied to the speaker’s goals and beliefs in the use of language. For successful reference to occur, we must also regcognize the role inference.

Yule: "it is important to recognize that not all referring expressions have identifiable physical referents. Indefinite noun phrases can be used to identify a physically present entity, but they can also be used to describe entities that are assumed to exist, but are unknown, or entities that, as far as we know, do not exist".

• "the key to making sense of reference is that pragmatic process whereby speakers select linguistic expressions with the intention of identifying certain entities and with the assumption that listeners will collaborate and interpret those expressions as the speaker intended".

• Successful reference is necessarily collaborative (‘shared knowledge’). It allows us to make sense of the following sentences: Picasso’s on the far wall. My Rolling Stones is missing.

Reference needs to use objectively correct naming, but can work with locally successful choices of expression. at all referring expressions have identifiable physical referents indefinite noun phrases can refer to: a physically present entity: 'There's a man waiting for you‘an unknown entity assumed to exist: 'He wants to marry a woman with lots of money‘an entity that does not exist: 'We'd like to sign a nine-foot-tall basketball player‘

use in b. (entity only known in terms of descriptive properties) is an attributive use meaning 'who/whatever fits the description‘referential use has one specific entity in mind (Donnellan 1966)

This is sometimes called an attributive use, meaning 'whoever/whatever fitsthe description'.attributive use is also possible with definite NPs: 'There was no sign of the killer'(when talking about a mysterious death, referential use when a particular person had been identified, chased into a building, but escaped). expressions themselves do not have reference but are invested with referential function in a context by a speaker/writer. It would be distinct from a referential use: a specific person is referred to, although his/her name or some other description is not used.

Reference and inferenceREFERENTIAL AND ATTRIBUTIVE USE

Convention between all members of a cultural/language community: collaboration of the intention to identify and the recognition of intention

'Shakespeare' does not refer only to a specific person: -Can I borrow your Shakespeare? -Yeah it's over there on the table

Conventional set of entities (e.g. things the writer produced) -Shakespeare takes up the whole bottom shelf -We're going to see Shakespeare in Londo -I hated Shakespeare at school

'the cheese sandwich' can refer to a person -Where's the cheese sandwich sitting? -He's over there by the window

pragmatic connection between proper names and objects conventionally associated within a socio-culturally defined community.

Reference and inferenceNAMES AND REFERENT

• Inferring is connecting prior knowledge to text based information to create meaning beyond what is directly stated. The role of inference in communication is to allow the listener to identify correctly which particular entity the speaker is referring to. We can even use vague expressions relying on the listener’s ability to infer what is the referent that we have in mind.

• Listeners make inferences about what is said in order to arrive at an interpretation of the speaker’s intended meaning. The choice of one type of referring expression rather than another seems to be based on what the speaker assumes the listener already knows.

• Inference: as there is no direct relationship between entities and words, the listener's task is to infer correctly which entity the speaker intends to identify by using a particular referring expression.

can use vague expressions ('the blue thing', 'that icky stuff', 'whatsisname')

can use expressions focusing on one feature ('Mister Aftershave is late today‘)

What are inferences

Reference• “Mr.

Kawasaki.” Used to refer to a man who always rode loud and fast in his motorcycle. A brand name is used to refer to a person here.

Inference• “Can I look at your Chomsky?” “I enjoy listening to Mozart.” This process, where additional information is needed to connect what is said to what is meant, is inference.

Reference & Inference

Example:• A: Have you seen my Yule?• B: Yeah, it is on the desk.

Inference – any additional information use by the listener to connect what is said to what must be meant.

• The key process here is called Inference, it is an additional information used by the listeners to connect what is said to what must be meant. In the previous example, the listener has to infer that name of the writer of a book can be used to identify a book by that writer. Similar type of inferences are necessary to understand some who says that Picasso is in the museum or I saw Shakespeare in London or I enjoy listening to Mozart.

The examples of inference (1) a. Where is the fresh salad sitting?

b. He’s sitting by the door.(2) a. Can I look at your Shakespeare?

b. Sure, it’s on the shelf over there.

Three-dimensional diagram• Speakers------ reference------ intention• Listeners------ inference------ interpretation• Sense---reference---referent• Word---meaning---entity

Logical understanding between reference and inference• These examples make it clear that we can use names associated with

things (salad) to refer to people and names of people (Shakespeare) to refer to things. The key process here is called inference. An inference is any additional information used by the hearer to connect what is said to what must be meant. In

• example (2), the hearer has to infer that the name of the writer of a book can be used to identify a book by that writer. In pragmatics, the act by which a speaker or writer uses language to enable a hearer or reader to identify something is called reference.

In reference there is a basic collaboration at work:

• ‘intention-to-identify’ and

• 'recognition-of-intention’.

• Collaboration>This process needs not only work between one speaker and one listener; it appears to work, in terms of convention, between all members of  a  community who  share a common language and culture.

• Yule:“Our ability to identify intended referents has actually depended on more than our understanding of the referring expression". It has been aided by the linguistic material, or co-text, accompanying the referring expression. The referring expression actually provides a range of reference, that is, a number of possible referents. In the examples below, the referring expression 'cheese sandwich‘ provides a number of possible referents. However, the different co-texts lead to a different type ofinterpretation in each case.

Reference and inferenceTHE ROLE OF CO-TEXT

The ability to identify intended referents does not just depend on the understanding of the referring expression, but is aided by the linguistic material, or co-text, accompanying it.

Brazil wins World Cup

('wins World Cup' limits the range of possible interpretations)

the referring expression provides a range of reference, a number of possible referents

The cheese sandwich is made with white bread

The cheese sandwich left without paying

co-text: linguistic part of the environment in which a referring expression is used context: physical environment and (speech) conventions, e.g., a restaurant. or context, is perhaps

more easily recognized as having a powerful impact on how referring expressions are to be interpreted.

The heart-attack mustn't be moved (hospital)

Your ten-thirty just cancelled (dentist)

A couple of rooms have complained about the heat (hotel)

conventions may differ from one social group to another reference is a social act in which the speaker assumes that the word/phrase chosen to identify an

object/person will be interpreted as the speaker intended (not simply a relationship between the meaning of a word/phrase and an object/person in the world). It is a social act, in which the speaker assumes that the word or phrase chosen to  identify an object or  person will be interpreted as the speaker intended”.

• In English, initial reference is often indefinite. The definite noun phrases and the pronouns are examples of subsequent reference to already introduced referents, generally known as anaphoric reference, or anaphora". In technical terms, the second or subsequent expression is the anaphora and the initial expression is the antecedent. Anaphora is a subsequent reference to an already introduced entity. Mostly we use anaphora in a text to maintain reference.

• In talking and writing we have to keep track of who or what we are talking about for more than one sentence at a time, we use anaphoric reference. -In the film, a man and a woman were trying to wash a cat.-The man was holding the cat while the woman poured water on it.-He said something to her and they started laughing.

initial/introductory reference is often indefinite ('a man', 'a woman', 'a cat')

subsequent reference with definite NPs ('the man, 'the cat', 'the woman') or with pronouns('it', 'he', 'she')

Reference and inferenceANAPHORIC REFERENCE I

• As with other types of reference, the connection between referent and anaphora may not always be direct. For example, In a complaint

” I was waiting for the bus, but he just drove by without stopping”

Notice that antecedent is bus and he anaphoric expression is “ he” we would normally expect it to be used for a bus. Obviously there is an inference involved here: if someone is taking about a bus in motion , assume that there is a drive. That assumed driver is inferred referent for “ he” .The term “inference ‘ has been used here to describe what the listener or reader) does.

• In English, initial reference, or introductory mention, is often indefinite (a man, a woman, a cat). In the example the definite noun phrases (the man, the cat, the woman) and the pronouns (it, he, her, they) are examples of subsequent reference to already introduced referents, generally known as anaphoric reference, or anaphora.

• Reference to already introduced referents is called anaphoric reference (initial expression: antecedent - subsequent expression: anaphor)

• anaphoric reference need not be exactly identical to antecedent:

-Peel and slice six potatoes. Put them in cold salted water.('them' now refers to 'the six peeled and sliced potatoes')

• sometimes reversal of antecedent-anaphor order.

-I turned the corner and almost stepped on it. There was a large snake in the middle of the path. Cataphoric pattern ('it' is a cataphor)

• While definite nouns and pronouns can act as anaphors, ellipsis can as well (zero anaphor). zero anaphora, or ellipsis is When the interpretation requires us to identify an entity, and no linguistic expression is presented.

Peel an onion and slice it.Drop the slices into hot oil.Cook * for three minutes. ( “slice” “them” was

eliminated “ellipsis”)• The last utterance 'Cook for three minutes' works with

the expectation that the listener will be able to infer that the speaker intends to identify the peeled onion slices.

ANAPHORIC REFERENCE

• Anaphora is a subsequent reference to an already introduced entity. Mostly we use anaphora in a text to maintain reference. When we establish a referent ( e.g. can I borrow your book?) and subsequently referee to the same object( yeah, it’s on the table) , we have particular kind of referential relationship between book and it. The Second ( and any subsequent ) referring expression is an example of anaphora and the first mentioned is called the “antecedent”

• As with other types of reference, the connection between referent and anaphora may not always be direct. For example, In a complaint

” I was waiting for the bus, but he just drove by without stopping”

Notice that antecedent is bus and he anaphoric expression is “ he” we would normally expect it to be used for a bus. Obviously there is an inference involved here: if someone is taking about a bus in motion , assume that there is a drive. That assumed driver is inferred referent for “ he” .The term “ inference ‘ has been used here to describe what the listener or reader does.

A: Can I borrow your dictionary?

B: Yean, it’s on the table.• Here, word it refers back to the word

dictionary. The previous word dictonary is called the antecedent,and the second word it is called the an aphor or anaphoric expression.

Antecedent & Anaphora

A:“Can I borrow your book?”

B:“Yes, it’s on the table.”

The Examples of Anaphor

The Book and it have a referential relationship. The first mention is called the antecedent. The second and any subsequent reference is called the anaphora.

Indirect anaphora or bridging referenceI walked into the room. The windows looked out to the bay.

Antecedent anaphor

Indirect anaphora or bridging reference

• Successful reference means that an intention was recognized, via inference, indicating a kind of shared knowledge and hence social connection.

Remember that:

Pragmatics is the study of how more gets communicated than is said.