
Dramatized Discourse
The Mandarin Chinese ba-construction
Zhuo Jing-Schmidt(Author)
John Benjamins Publishing Co
Published on 31. August 2005
Book
Hardback
337 pages
978-90-272-1565-9 (ISBN)
Description
Language is a symbolic system of meanings evoked by linguistic forms. The choice of forms in communication is non-arbitrary. Rather, speakers pick those forms whose meanings best convey their discourse intention. The meaning of the Mandarin ba-construction, argues Jing-Schmidt, is discourse dramaticity, a concept that includes high conceptual salience and subjectivity. The ba-construction and its "syntactic variations" are never interchangeable because contrast in their meanings determines difference in their functions. Quantitative analyses based on authentic data validate the postulation of discourse dramaticity. By taking discourse pragmatics seriously, the dramaticity hypothesis enables a unitary explanation that transcends sentence grammar. The diachronic treatment reveals the syntactic change of the ba-construction as an adaptive process of pragmatization, which raises the issue of linguistic evolution as a result of socio-cultural development.
This book will be of particular value to readers interested in the interaction between grammar and pragmatics and to teachers confronting the controversy of the ba-construction in foreign language pedagogy.
This book will be of particular value to readers interested in the interaction between grammar and pragmatics and to teachers confronting the controversy of the ba-construction in foreign language pedagogy.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Amsterdam
Netherlands
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 245 mm
Width: 164 mm
Weight
840 gr
ISBN-13
978-90-272-1565-9 (9789027215659)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
08/2005
1st Edition
John Benjamins Publishing Company
€161.99
Available for download
Person
Content
1. Preface; 2. Acknowledgements; 3. List of Figures and Tables; 4. Notational Conventions; 5. Abbreviations; 6. 1. Introduction; 7. 2. Database; 8. 3. The syntax of the ba -construction: Overview; 9. 4. Previous approaches; 10. 5. The hypothesis of discourse dramaticity; 11. 6. Cognitive salience as discourse dramaticity; 12. 7. Subjectivity and emotionality as discourse dramaticity; 13. 8. An interim conclusion; 14. 9 The pragmatization of the ba -construction: An adaptive change; 15. 10. Final remarks; 16. Notes; 17. References; 18. Text material; 19. Author index; 20. Subject index