Pragmatics and Discourse 3 (+ Plag et al. Ch 6)

What is discourse primarily concerned with?

A) The study of grammar rules.

B) Language use beyond the sentence level in texts and conversation.

C) Phonetics and phonology.

D) Isolated word meanings.

How does discourse analysis differ from pragmatics?

A) Discourse analysis focuses solely on individual sentences.

B) Pragmatics focuses on the structure of texts.

C) Discourse analysis emphasizes the 'hidden' meanings in the surrounding context.

D) Pragmatics and discourse analysis are identical.

What is deixis in discourse analysis?

A) The grammatical structure of a sentence.

B) Pointing with language to contextual features such as person, place, or time.

C) A type of verbal cohesion.

D) A lexical repetition within a text.

Which of the following is an example of anaphoric reference?

A) "The dog barked. It was loud."

B) "If you meet her, the woman in red is kind."

C) "Here is the book I promised you."

D) "Tomorrow, we’ll visit the park."

What is cohesion in the context of discourse analysis?

A) The logical flow of ideas in a text or conversation.

B) Verbalized links and formal ties between clauses and sentences in a text.

C) The implicit connections understood by the reader or listener.

D) The process of creating meaning through context.

Which of the following best describes coherence?

A) Explicit linguistic expressions connecting sentences.

B) The grammatical correctness of a sentence.

C) The mental sense of connectedness within a text.

D) The use of connectors like "and," "but," or "because."

Which type of deixis is represented by the word "yesterday"?

A) Person deixis.

B) Spatial deixis.

C) Temporal deixis.

D) Anaphoric deixis.

What is the difference between the two types of discourse?

A) One focuses on written text, and the other focuses on spoken language.

B) One refers to chained utterances, while the other refers to instances of language use about a specific topic.

C) One is concerned with grammar, and the other is concerned with semantics.

D) They are two names for the same concept.

What is the role of phorics in a text?

A) To introduce new information.

B) To point to elements within the same text for meaning.

C) To create implicit coherence.

D) To provide a broader cultural context for understanding.

Which of the following statements about cohesion and coherence is correct?

A) Cohesion is implicit, while coherence is explicit.

B) Cohesion exists in the mind of the reader, while coherence exists within the text.

C) Cohesion involves surface-level connections, while coherence involves deeper, pragmatic understanding.

D) Cohesion is necessary for coherence but not vice versa.

What is the primary focus of pragmatics?

A) The phonological structure of words.

B) The grammatical competence of speakers.

C) The communicative intentions of speakers and how listeners decode them.

D) The morphological composition of sentences.

In the example (1a, Plag), where a mother says to her son, "Take some more vegetables!" what is her primary intention?

A) To inform the son about vegetables.

B) To make her son eat more vegetables.

C) To state a fact about vegetables.

D) To ask a question about vegetables.

Which of the following statements best defines "grammatical competence"?

A) The ability to use language for various communicative purposes.

B) The ability to produce and understand linguistic forms like phonemes, morphemes, and sentences.

C) The knowledge of social norms in language use.

D) The understanding of cultural references in language.

What is the primary intention of the speaker in (1d): "I baptise thee Alexander Frederic"?

A) To state a fact.

B) To baptize a child.

C) To make a request.

D) To express a promise.

What do pragmatic studies primarily investigate?

A) The form of linguistic units such as phonemes and morphemes.

B) How speakers express their communicative intentions using language.

C) The historical development of languages.

D) The grammatical rules of sentence formation.

Why is understanding a speaker's intention important in communication?

A) It helps decode the grammatical structure of sentences.

B) It enables the listener to understand the speaker's purpose and respond appropriately.

C) It ensures that language is used according to traditional rules.

D) It simplifies the phonological analysis of words.

What is the difference between phonological and pragmatic analysis of language?

A) Phonological analysis focuses on meaning, while pragmatic analysis focuses on sound.

B) Phonological analysis deals with form, while pragmatic analysis deals with function.

C) Phonological analysis considers intentions, while pragmatic analysis studies structure.

D) Phonological and pragmatic analyses are identical in focus.

According to the text, what additional knowledge is required beyond grammatical competence for effective language use?

A) Knowledge of cultural customs.

B) The ability to express and decode communicative intentions.

C) Mastery of written language.

D) Understanding of historical linguistics.

How do listeners typically decode a speaker’s intentions?

A) By analyzing the grammatical correctness of sentences.

B) By relying on explicit phonological cues.

C) By interpreting the context and function of what is being said.

D) By focusing on the morphological components of language.

What do speakers aim to achieve by using language, according to the text?

A) To explore the form of linguistic units.

B) To create meaningful and intentional communication.

C) To adhere to grammatical rules.

D) To identify semantic ambiguities.

What is the primary purpose of a speech act in language use?

A) To follow grammar rules

B) To perform an action through language

C) To provide lexical meanings

D) To enhance vocabulary

Which term refers to the linguistic form of a speech act?

A) Illocution

B) Perlocution

C) Locution

D) Pragmatic meaning

When a teacher says, "Lions have gold-coloured fur," which type of speech act is being performed?

A) Command

B) Promise

C) Declaration

D) Representative

The utterance "I baptize thee Alexander Frederic" is an example of which type of speech act?

A) Commissive

B) Declarative

C) Directive

D) Expressive

Which term describes the speaker’s intention behind a speech act?

A) Semantic meaning

B) Illocutionary force

C) Perlocutionary effect

D) Syntax

The reaction of the hearer to a speech act is referred to as:

A) Illocution

B) Locution

C) Pragmatic meaning

D) Perlocution

What type of speech act is exemplified by the utterance, "Could you please show me the way?"

A) Commissive

B) Directive

C) Expressive

D) Declarative

Classifying a speech act based on changing an existing state of affairs, such as naming a ship, belongs to which category?

A) Commissive

B) Expressive

C) Declarative

D) Representative

The utterance "I’ll bring you a map of London" is an example of which type of speech act?

A) Commissive

B) Directive

C) Representative

D) Expressive

Which of the following is an example of an expressive speech act?

A) "Good job, Claire!"

B) "You are under arrest."

C) "I claim that this theory needs revision."

D) "Do this again, and I’ll tell your parents."

Which of the following best describes a direct speech act?

A. An utterance where the illocutionary force is explicitly indicated by a performative verb.

B. An utterance where the illocutionary force is implied rather than directly stated.

C. An utterance that involves a mismatch between linguistic form and function.

D. An utterance that fails to meet the sincerity condition.

What is the main distinction between (10a) "I strongly advise you to see a doctor" and (10b) "Why don’t you see a doctor?" in terms of speech act realization? --> Plag

A. (10a) is indirect, and (10b) is direct.

B. (10a) is a question, while (10b) is a declarative statement.

C. (10a) is a direct speech act, and (10b) is an indirect speech act.

D. Both are direct speech acts with identical pragmatic meanings.

What is a propositional content condition in the context of felicity conditions?

A. The hearer must understand the locution.

B. The speech act must clearly and properly render its content.

C. The speaker must sincerely intend the speech act.

D. The utterance must count as the intended speech act for both the speaker and hearer.

In Example (12), which utterance represents an indirect request through a question? --> Plag

A. "Please share your course-book with me."

B. "Could you share your course-book with me?"

C. "Oh goodness, I have left my course-book at home!"

D. None of the above.

Which of the following is NOT one of the felicity conditions?

A. Sincerity condition

B. General condition

C. Locutionary condition

D. Preparatory condition

What is the primary process involved in understanding the pragmatic meaning of an utterance?

a) Compositional analysis

b) Inferencing

c) Memorization

d) Phonological decoding

What type of knowledge is required to understand which cake is referred to in the utterance “That cake over there contains nuts”?

a) World knowledge

b) Situational knowledge

c) Interpersonal knowledge

d) Co-textual knowledge

How is “background knowledge” defined in the context of understanding utterance meaning?

a) Knowledge gained from gestures and posture during a conversation

b) Knowledge stored in the interlocutors’ minds, including interpersonal and world knowledge

c) Knowledge of grammatical structures

d) Knowledge specific to the immediate physical context

In the dialogue where one speaker says, “I would like to have that cake over there,” and the friend responds, “But it contains nuts,” what type of knowledge is used to identify the reference of “it”?

a) Situational knowledge

b) Co-textual knowledge

c) World knowledge

d) Interpersonal knowledge

Which of the following scenarios best illustrates the role of interpersonal knowledge in understanding utterance meaning?

a) Identifying which cake is being referred to by “that cake over there”

b) Knowing that your friend is aware of your nut allergy and assumes eating nuts is harmful to you

c) Understanding the meaning of “over there” based on the speaker’s gestures

d) Recognizing that rivers flow in valleys and not on mountain tops

What is the Cooperative Principle in communication?

A. A set of unbreakable rules for human interaction.

B. A principle suggesting communication is a rational and cooperative activity.

C. A guideline for avoiding conflicts in conversations.

D. A law dictating the use of formal language.

Which of the following is NOT one of Grice's conversational maxims?

A. Maxim of Quantity

B. Maxim of Politeness

C. Maxim of Manner

D. Maxim of Quality

When a speaker provides too much or too little information, which maxim is being violated?

A. Maxim of Quality

B. Maxim of Quantity

C. Maxim of Manner

D. Maxim of Relevance

In the dialogue below, which maxim does speaker B flout?

A: "Do you know at what time the meeting starts?"

B: "What a wonderful day we have!"

A. Maxim of Relevance

B. Maxim of Manner

C. Maxim of Quantity

D. Maxim of Quality

What does the term "flouting" a maxim mean?

A. Intentionally violating a maxim without clear purpose.

B. Breaking a rule without consequences.

C. Not directly following a maxim but still enabling meaningful communication.

D. Following maxims strictly.

In example (24a), why does speaker B say, "I am boiling"?

A. To violate the maxim of quality.

B. To flout the maxim of quality and convey an exaggerated expression of feeling hot.

C. To provide irrelevant information.

D. To follow the maxim of relevance.

In example (24b), why does speaker B say, "Well, its color is lovely," instead of directly criticizing the sofa?

A. To avoid conflict and maintain politeness.

B. To follow the maxim of manner.

C. To flout the maxim of relevance.

D. To provide as much information as possible.

When speaker B says, "The church bells are ringing," and speaker A infers the time, which concept does this demonstrate?

A. Violation of a maxim

B. Conversational implicature

C. Direct speech act

D. Literal meaning

Which of the following is true about conversational maxims?

A. They are unbreakable rules.

B. They dictate specific behavior in conversations.

C. They are principles that guide communication and can be flouted for various reasons.

D. They are universal across all cultures.

Why might a speaker flout a maxim, such as in example (24c)?

A. To confuse the listener.

B. To avoid being cooperative.

C. To convey a message indirectly, often due to contextual constraints.

D. To ensure all conversational maxims are followed.

According to Brown and Levinson, what is the term used to describe the part of a person's self-image that desires admiration and acceptance from others?

A) Negative face

B) Positive face

C) Social self-image

D) Politeness principle

Which of the following best demonstrates negative politeness?

A) “Please, help me with this assignment.”

B) “Jenny, I know you are so knowledgeable in pragmatics, help me please.”

C) “Could you help me with this assignment? If your time permits, of course.”

D) “I have absolutely no idea what I should write in this assignment!”

Why might a speaker prefer to use an indirect speech act like "Could you possibly bring my car to the garage?" instead of a direct command like "Bring my car to the garage"?

A) To save time in communication.

B) To threaten the hearer’s positive face.

C) To minimize the imposition on the hearer’s negative face.

D) To express solidarity with the hearer.

What factor increases the likelihood that a speaker will use a more polite and indirect strategy?

A) The speaker's confidence in their request.

B) The greater the degree of imposition.

C) The speaker's familiarity with the topic.

D) The clarity of the speaker's intent.

What does the concept of “face” refer to in the context of politeness theory?

A) The physical appearance of a person during communication.

B) The social self-image a person wants to maintain during interactions.

C) The tone of voice used in polite communication.

D) The specific words chosen to express a command.

Which of the following is NOT one of the components involved in performing a speech act?

A) Locution

B) Illocution

C) Perlocution

D) Phonetics

What is the primary difference between direct and indirect speech acts?

A) Direct speech acts use more complex sentence structures.

B) Indirect speech acts involve a lower degree of linguistic explicitness in expressing the illocutionary force.

C) Direct speech acts are always impolite.

D) Indirect speech acts are used exclusively in formal settings.