1、Chapter Five Semantics1.The Study of MeaningnSemantics:qthe study of language meaning.qIn our discussion,we will limit ourselves to the study of meaning from a linguistic point of view.nPragmatics:qThe meaning of utterances2.Semantic MeaningnSemantics is the study of meaning in language.nMeaning has
2、 been studied for thousands of years by philosophers,logicians and linguists.E.g.Plato&Aristotle.3.The meaning of meaningnC.K.Ogden&I.A.Richards(1923).The Meaning of Meaning.nJohn means to write.nA green light means to go.nHealth means everything.nHis look was full of meaning.nWhat is the meaning of
3、 life?nWhat does capitalist mean to you?nWhat does cornea mean?nThe transparent,convex,anterior portion of the outer fibrous coat of the eyeball that covers the iris and the pupil and is continuous with the sclera.nC.K Ogden and I.A.Richard,in their famous book The Meaning of Meaning(1923),have give
4、n a list of twenty-two definitions of the word meaning.nOne aim of semantics is to distinguish these different ways in which language“means”.Some views concerning the study of meaning nNaming theory(Plato)nThe conceptualist view nContextualism(Bloomfield)nBehaviorism Naming theory(Plato)nThe naming
5、theory was proposed by Greek scholar Plato,that is:nWords are names or labels for the objects they stand for.nE.g.:tree,car,fruit,dogNaming theory(Plato)nLimitations:1)Applicable to nouns only.2)There are nouns which denote things that do not exist in the real world,e.g.ghost,dragon,unicorn,phenix 3
6、)There are nouns that do not refer to physical objects but abstract notions,e.g.joy,impulse,hatredThe conceptualist viewnThe conceptualist view has been held by Odgen and Richard.The conceptualist viewnThe conceptualist view holds that there is no direct link between a linguistic form and what it re
7、fers to;nrather,in the interpretation of meaning they are linked through the mediation of concepts in the mind.Ogden and Richards:semantic triangleSymbol/formword/phrase/sentenceReferentobject in the world of experienceThought/Reference conceptairplaneThe conceptualist viewnLimitations:(1)the link b
8、etween the symbol and the concept remains unclarified.(2)people do not actually try to see the image of something in their minds eye every time they come across a linguistic symbol.The contextualism nMeaning should be studied in terms of situation,use,contextelements closely linked with language beh
9、avior.nThe representative of this approach was J.R.Firth nAnd was further strengthened by Bloomfield.The contextualism n“I was near that bank yesterday.”n“River bank”or“financial situation”nI dont like her.She is tall and thin and moves like a crane.nI do like her.She is tall and thin and moves like
10、 a crane.The contextualism nTwo types of contexts are recognized:qSituational context:spatiotemporal situationq Linguistic context:the probability of a words co-occurrence or collocation.Behaviorism nBehaviorists attempted to define meaning as“the situation in which the speaker utters it and the res
11、ponse it calls forth in the hearer”.nThe story of Jack and Jill:Jill Jack S_r-s_RLexical meaning nSense and reference are both concerned with the study of word meaning.They are two related but different aspects of meaning.Lexical meaning nSense-is concerned with the inherent meaning of the linguisti
12、c form.nIt is the collection of all the features of the linguistic form;nit is abstract and de-contextualized.nIt is the aspect of meaning dictionary compilers are interested in.Lexical meaning nE.g:bachelor=never married the sense of red in color system:brown,yellow,orange etc.Lexical meaning nRefe
13、rence-what a linguistic form refers to in the real,physical world;nit deals with the relationship between the linguistic element and the non-linguistic world of experience.nE.g.:things,actions,events and qualities.Lexical meaning nTree refers to the real tree.nBook refers to a object book.Lexical me
14、aning nIt is not always possible to draw a clear-cut line between sense and reference.Note:nLinguistic forms having the same sense may have different references in different situations;on the other hand,there are also occasions,when linguistic forms with the same reference might differ in sense,ne.g
15、.the morning star and the evening star,rising sun in the morning and the sunset at dusk.Sense RelationsnSynonymynPolysemynHomonymynHyponymynAntonymyGradableComplementaryConverseSynonymynbuy/purchasenthrifty/economical/stingynautumn/fallnflat/apartmentntube/undergroundSynonymynSynonymy refers to the
16、sameness or close similarity of meaning.nWords that are close in meaning are called synonyms.nBecause of historical reasons,English vocabulary contains two categories of words:native words and loan words.SynonymynDialectal synonyms-synonyms used in different regional dialects,ne.g.autumn-fall,biscui
17、t-cracker,petrol gasolinenStylistic synonyms-synonyms differing in style,ne.g.kid,child,offspring;start,begin,commence;SynonymynSynonyms that differ in their emotive or evaluative meaning,ne.g.collaborator-accomplice,nCollocational synonyms,ne.g.accuseof,chargewith,rebukefor;SynonymynSemantically di
18、fferent synonyms,ne.g.amaze,astound,PolysemynPolysemy-the same one word may have more than one meaning,nE.g.:“foot”nThe part of the body at the end of the legnA measurement of length nThe bottom of somethingPolysemynE.g.“table”may mean:nA piece of furniturenAll the people seated at a tablenThe food
19、that is put on a tablenA thin flat piece of stone,metal wood,etc.nOrderly arrangement of facts,figures,etc.HomonymynHomonymy-the phenomenon that words having different meanings have the same form,e.g.different words are identical in sound or spelling,or in both.nHomophone-when two words are identica
20、l in sound,nE.g.rain-reign,night/knight,HomonymynHomogragh-when two words are identical in spelling,nE.g.tear(n.)-tear(v.),lead(n.)-lead(v.),nComplete homonym-when two words are identical in both sound and spelling,nE.g.ball,bank,watch,scale,fast,Note:nA polysemic word is the result of the evolution
21、 of the primary meaning of the word(the etymology of the word);nWhile complete homonyms are often brought into being by coincidence.Homonymy“How is bread made?”“I know that!”Alice cried eagerly.“You take some flour”“Where do you pick the flower?”the White Queen asked.“In a garden,or in the hedges?”“
22、Well,it isnt picked at all,”Alice explained;“its ground”“How many acres of ground?”said the White Queen.HyponymynHyponymy-the sense relation between a more general,more inclusive word and a more specific word.nSuperordinate:the word which is more general in meaning.HyponymynHyponyms:the word which i
23、s more specific in meaning.nCo-hyponyms:hyponyms of the same superordinate.HyponymynSuperordinate:flowernHyponyms:rose,tulip,lily,chrysanthemum,peony,narcissus,nSuperordinate:furniturenHyponyms:bed,table,desk,dresser,wardrobe,sofa,Animalbird fish insect animal human animal tiger lion elephant .Anton
24、ymsnAntonymy-is used for oppositeness of meaning.nAntonyms-words are opposite in meaningGradable antonymsnGradable antonyms -there are often intermediate forms between the two members of a pair,e.g.old-young,hot-cold,tall-short,Gradable antonymy ngood-badnlong-shortnbig-smallqCan be modified by adve
25、rbs of degree like very.qCan have comparative forms.qCan be asked with how.Complementary antonymsnComplementary antonyms -the denial of one member of the pair implies the assertion of the other,e.g.alive-dead,male-female,Complementary antonymynalive:deadnmale:femalenpresent:absentninnocent:guiltynod
26、d:evennpass:failnboy:girlnhit:missRelational oppositesnRelational opposites-pairs of words that exhibit the reversal of a relationship between the two items.nConverse antonymyRelational antonymynbuy:sellnlend:borrowngive:receivenparent:childnhusband:wifenteacher:studentnabove:belownbefore:afternhost
27、:guestnemployer:employeeSense relations between sentences n(1)X is synonymous with Yn(2)X is inconsistent with Yn(3)X entails Yn(4)X presupposes Yn(5)X is a contradictionn(6)X is semantically anomalousX is synonymous with YnX:He was a bachelor all his life.Y:He never got married all his life.nX:The
28、boy killed the cat.Y:The cat was killed by the boy.nIf X is true,Y is true;if X is false,Y is false.X is inconsistent with YnX:He is single.nY:He has a wife.nX:This is my first visit to Beijing.nY:I have been to Beijing twice.nIf X is true,Y is false;if X is false,Y is true.X entails YnX:John marrie
29、d a blond heiress.nY:John married a blond.nX:Marry has been to Beijing.nY:Marry has been to China.nIf X entails Y,then the meaning of X is included in Y.X entails YnEntailment is a relation of inclusion.If X entails Y,then the meaning of X is included in Y.nIf X is true,Y is necessarily true;if X is
30、 false,Y may be true or false.X presupposes YnX:His bike needs repairing.nY:He has a bike.nPaul has given up smoking.nPaul once smoked.nIf X is true,Y must be true;If X is false,Y is still true.X is a contradictionn*My unmarried sister is married to a bachelor.n*The orphans parents are pretty well-o
31、ff.X is semantically anomalousn*The man is pregnant.n*The table has bad intentions.n*Sincerity shakes hands with the black apple.Analysis of meaning nComponential analysis nPredication analysis Componential analysisnComponential analysis-a way to analyze lexical meaning.nThe approach is based on the
32、 belief that the meaning of a word can be dissected into meaning components,called semantic features.Componential AnalysisnHUMANqman(+ADULT,+MALE)qwoman(+ADULT,+FEMALE)qboy(-ADULT,+MALE)qgirl(-ADULT,+FEMALE)Componential AnalysisComponential AnalysisComponential AnalysisComponential Analysisnfather:P
33、ARENT(x,y)&MALE(x)qx is a parent of y,and x is male.ntake:CAUSE(x,(HAVE(x,y)qx causes x to have y.ngive:CAUSE(x,(HAVE(x,y)qx causes x not to have y.Predication analysisn1)The meaning of a sentence is not to be worked out by adding up all the meanings of its component words,ne.g“The dog bites the man
34、”is semantically different from“The man bites the dog”though their components are exactly the same.Predication analysisn2)There are two aspects to sentence meaning:grammatical meaning and semantic meaning,nE.g.*Green clouds are sleeping furiously.n*Sincerity shook hands with the black apple.nWhether
35、 a sentence is semantically meaningful is governed by rules called selectional restrictions.Predication analysisnPredication analysis-a way to analyze sentence meaning.nIt proposed by British G.Leech.nPredication-the abstraction of the meaning of a sentence.A predication consists of argument(s)and p
36、redicate.Predication analysisnAn argument is a logical participant in a predication,largely identical with the nominal elements in a sentence.nA predicate is something said about an argument or it states the logical relation linking the arguments in a sentence.Predication analysisnTom smokes.TOM(SMO
37、KE)nThe tree grows well.TREE(GROW)nThe kids like apples.KIDS APPLE(LIKE)nI sent him a letter.I HIM LETTER(SEND)Predication analysisnAccording to the number of arguments contained in a predication,we may classify the predications into the following types:Predication analysisnOne-place predication:smoke,grow,rise,run,nTwo-place predication:like,love,save,bite,beat,nThree-place predication:give,sent,promise,call,nNo-place predication:It is hot.
