The semiotic triangle. Componential Analysis. Lexical fields. Words. (Lexical) semantic relations. Componential Analysis. Semantics.

Transcription

1 The semiotic triangle emantics meaning Componential Analysis linguistic sign object in world referent Words Lexical fields optimistic cow van pessimistic bus sane optimistic sane pessimistic cow horse fish foal mad schizophrenic motorcycle horse fish foal psychopathic paranoid bicycle psychopathic schizophrenic paranoid mad van bus motorcycle bicycle (Lexical) semantic relations Componential Analysis UPERORDINATE TERM mental states HYPONYM HYPONYM HYPONYM HYPONYM optimistic pessimistic mad sane UPERORDINATE meronyms antonyms... HYPONYM HYPONYM HYPONYM schizophrenic psychopathic paranoid 1

2 Language Change: semantics Chaucer: (a) At mete wel ytaught was she with alle he leet no morsel from hir lippes falle, (b) Full semely after hir mete she raughte Middle English mete A meal, occasionally dinner Modern English meat emantics Events and Eventualities a. Any kind of food: mete shall be mylk, honey and wyne b. Food in general, opposite to drink: it is mete and drinke The flesh of animals used for food process EMANTIC EVENTUALITIE Packing eventualities into grammar The lion tourist lazily through bush Mr Harvey, aged 25, was knifed to death in a savage attack after he and Tracie were pursued by anor car in a cat and mouse chase near Alvechurch, Worcestershire. participants circumstances how where Packing eventualities into grammar Mr Harvey, aged 25, was knifed to death in a savage attack after he and Tracie were pursued by anor car in a cat and mouse chase near Alvechurch, Worcestershire. emantics Logic and emantics someone attacked someone (savagely) someone someone cat and mouse-ly someone died 2

3 one place door (x) accountant (x) book (x) run (x) Logic Predicates two place eat (x, y) chase (x, y) read (x, y) Connectives Logical formulae If someone chases someone else n both people run what predicates? what connectives? and : or : not : implies Logical formulae If someone chases someone else n both people run chase (x, y) run (x) run (y) person (x) person (y) chase (x, y) run (x) run (y) Dowty Componential Meanings for s The door is open. open(x) The door opens. become(open(x)) John opened door. cause(john, become(open(x))) tatives, inchoatives, causatives existence: for all: Logic Quantifiers Quantifiers existence: for all: Logic All men are mortal. ocrates is a man. Therefore ocrates is mortal. All men are mortal. ocrates is a man. Therefore ocrates is mortal. x: man (x) mortal (x) man (ocrates) mortal (ocrates) 3

4 Logic: capturing ambiguity emantics 1. Every person in this room speaks two languages. Compositional emantics 2. Two languages are spoken by everyone in this room. How to put meanings toger from parts... 3 (3 + 4) (5-2 x 4) =? COMPOITIONAL EMANTIC 4 The dog s.t. = - - -dog s.o. - s.o. = -dog s.t. = - The dog The dog 4

5 The dog s.o. - s.o. = -dog -dog s.t. = - - The dog s.t. = - chasing was somewhere somewhere = in--garden PP prep in garden The dog s.t. = --in--garden was somewhere somewhere = in--garden PP prep in garden emantics Using semantics to motivate grammatical structure I saw my accountant repairing toilet Grammatical Functions ubject N Finite [ing] [ing] N N I saw my accountant repairing toilet 5

6 Grammatical Functions ubject [ing] Finite [ing] N [ing] N N I saw my accountant repairing toilet V I saw my accountant cleaning toilet V I saw my accountant cleaning toilet structure (a) structure (b) emantics Or types of meaning Metaphorical tructures Lakoff and Johnson: Metaphors we live by EMOTION: HAPPY is UP; AD is DOWN I m feeling up. That boosted my spirits I m feeling down. He fell into a depression My spirits rose. Her spirits sank. You re in high spirits He s feeling low. The height of ecstasy. The depths of misery. That gave me a lift. That depressed me. Metaphorical tructures Lakoff and Johnson: Metaphors we live by PHYICAL HEALTH: HEALTH & LIFE is UP; ICKNE & DEATH is DOWN He s at peak of He s sinking fast. health. Lazarus rose from He fell ill. dead. he s in top shape. he came down with flu. Her health is declining. He is feeling under wear. Prototypicality: concepts and radial categories An internal structure for concept bird ostriches pigeons robins, magpies hawks hummingbirds storks penguins 6