Pragmatics Final Exam (48p)

1. Define and illustrate the concept: positive face (2p).

2. State whether the following utterances are instances of positive or negative politeness. Explain your answer (8p)
a. Sir, the gentleman asked with a twang in his voice that was unmistakably Southern, would it bother you terribly if I joined
you?'"
b. "Ooh, I want to use one of those!" (you saw a cup of pens on your colleagues desk!
c. "You must be hungry, it's a long time since breakfast. How about some lunch?
d. "Professor, I was wondering if you could tell us about the Chamber of Secrets."
3. Discuss and exemplify Austin's structure of the speech act. Provide examples. (2p)
4. Define and illustrate the notion: orientational metaphor (2p)
5. What are the rules for a request to be felicitous, according to Searle?
6. Identify the conceptual metaphor underlying the utterances below: (1p)
a.
b.
c.

That was a low trick.

I wouldnt stoop to that.
That would be beneath me.

7. Say whether the following utterances are instances of coping with a clash/suspending/infringement/ flouting/opting out/violation.
Mention the maxim(s) that is/are broken and the implicature generated (if necessary). The same type of non-observance might occur
several times. (8p)
(1)
If a doctor or a nurse, who has complete confidentiality regarding his/her patients, is asked by the police or the press to reveal
something about the patient that s/he is treating, he /she will reply:
A: I am sorry but can't tell you anything.
(2)
Mother: Did you study all day long?
Son who has been playing all day long: I've been studying till know!
(3) Sara: Did you enjoy the party last night?
Anna: There was plenty of oriental food on the table, lots of flowers all over the place, people hanging around chatting with each othe
(4) Journalist: So if no one asked you to be here, why are you here?
Lawyer: Don't take this personally, Mr. Woodward. It would be a mistake to do that. I just don't have anything to say.
(5)

A: Where does Professor Morgan live?

B: Somewhere in Providence.
8. For each dialogue, state the implicature that you can draw from the second speakers response. Choose the right type of implicature
as well (8p).
(1)

Tom: Wheres the soup?

Gabriela: I was very tired.
Implicature: .................
Implicature type: conventional/generalized conversational/particularized conversational

(2)

Steve: Hows your dad feeling?

Jane: Lets go into the garden.
Implicature: .................
Implicature type: conventional/generalized conversational/particularized conversational

(3)

Mat: Want some beer?

Chris: Ive been off on the wagon for 2 years.
Implicature: .................
Implicature type: conventional/generalized conversational/particularized conversational

(4)

Even Mike knows you cant be bigamous in this state.

Implicature: .................
Implicature type: conventional/generalized conversational/particularized conversational

9. Consider the dialogue below. Mention the implicature that is generated and state its type. Discuss the calculability of this class of
implicatures by specifying the steps through which the respective implicature was calculated (4p).
A: What can you tell me about Catherines ability to concentrate on a task? B: Catherine is a butterfly flitting from flower to flower.
10. Exemplify and give the illocutionary point, the direction of fit, and the expressed psychological state for commissives (2p).
11. Illustrate the difference between performatives and constatives in terms of morphosyntactic properties (2p)
12. Define the speech act.(2p)

13. Comment on the text below using the pragmatic notions studied and provide its translation
George: It just didnt work out. (U1) What can I do? (U2) I wanted to love her. (U3) I tried to love her. (U4) I couldnt. (U5)
Jerry: You tried. (U6)
George: I kept looking at her face. (U7) Id go: Cmon, love her. Love her! (U8)
Jerry: Did you tell her you loved her? (U9)
George: Oh, I had no choice. (U10) She squeezed it out of me! (U11) Shed tell me she loved me. (U12) Alright, at first, I just look at
her. (U13) Id go Oh, really? or Boy, thats, thats something. (U14) But, eventually you have to come back with Well, I love
you. (U15) You know, you can only hold out for so long! (U16)