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33373-01 - Lecture: Understanding: Semantics and Pragmatics (2 CP)
| Semester | fall semester 2016 |
| Course frequency | Irregular |
| Lecturers | Heike Behrens (heike.behrens@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | When we try to understand the meaning of a word, utterance, or text, we draw on multiple sources of information: the lexical semantics of words, and their combination in larger units (sentences/utterances, texts), the inferences about the speaker's intention (pragmatics), and the activation of contextual information (background knowledge, situation models, multimodal information like gesture, mimics, intonation). In this lecture we will review a wide range of approaches to meaning and meaning construction (e.g., lexical semantics; formal semantics; prototype theory; cognitive linguistic approaches like metaphor theory, frame semantics; pragmatic theories like speech act and relevance theory, and more recent approaches of knowledge integration from multiple sources (embodiment, multi modality, context/situation models). In this lecture series I will present the history of theories on semantics and pragmatics, which tended to deal with these aspects in isolation, and then focus on comtemporary, integrative theories (cognitive and frame semantics in linguistics, situation models in psycholinguistics). |
| Learning objectives | The students will learn about the main proposals regarding sense and reference in semantics and well as inference in pragmatics from the logical-philosophical tradition. This survey provides them with the fundamental questions of what the study of meaning is about. In a second step, they will learn how modern semantic-pragmatic and psycholinguistic approaches deal with the process of meaning construction: What knowledge is activated by listeners when interpreting the meaning of an utterance in a particular context? Where does this knowledge come from and what methods/data allow us to study these processes? |
| Bibliography | Busse, Dietrich (2012): Frame-Semantik: Ein Kompendium. Berlin. Cruse, Alan D. (2004): Meaning in language: An introduction to semantics and pragmatics (2 Aufl.). Oxford. Dancygier, Barbara, & Sweetser, Eve. (2014). Figurative Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Enfield, Nick J. (2015). The Utility of Meaning: What Words Mean and Why. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Enfield, Nicholas J. (2009): The anatomy of meaning: Speech, gesture, and composite utterances. Cambridge. Geeraerts, Dirk (2010): Theories of lexical semantics. Oxford. Löbner, Sebastian (2002): Understanding semantics. London. Pafel, Jürgen, & Reich, Ingo. (2016). Einführung in die Semantik: Grundlagen - Analysen - Theorien. Stuttgart: Metzler. Taylor, John R. (2012): The mental corpus: How language is represented in the mind. Oxford. Wilson, Deidre/Sperber, Dan (2012): Meaning and relevance2. Cambridge. |
| Admission requirements | 1 proseminar in Linguistics |
| Course application | MOnA |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Course auditors welcome |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
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No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Interphilologische Lehrveranstaltungen für die Slavistik (Master's degree subject: Slavic Studies (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Advanced English Linguistics (Bachelor's degree subject: English) Modul Deutsche Sprachwissenschaft I (Master's degree subject: German Language and Literature (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul English Linguistics (Master's degree subject: English) Modul English Sociolinguistics & Cognitive Linguistics (Master's degree subject: English (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Extending the View (Linguistics) (Bachelor's degree subject: English (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Focusing on the Discipline (Linguistics) (Bachelor's degree subject: English (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Forschungspraxis und Vertiefung (Master's degree program: Language and Communication) Modul Interphilologie (Master's degree subject: Italian Language and Literature (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: English) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: German Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: French Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Spanish Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Italian Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Nordic Philology) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Slavic Studies) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: English) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: German Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: French Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Spanish Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Italian Language and Literature) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Latin Philology) Modul Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Nordic Philology) Modul Refining Skills in Linguistics (Bachelor's degree subject: English (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Research Skills in English Linguistics or Literature (Master's degree subject: English (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Sprache als System (Master's degree program: Language and Communication) Modul Sprache als System (Master's degree program: Language and Communication (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Sprache und Kognition (Master's degree program: Language and Communication (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Vertiefung, Wissen, Praxis (Master's degree subject: Spanish Language and Literature (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) |
| Assessment format | record of achievement |
| Assessment details | Written exam |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | one repetition, repetition counts |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | as often as necessary |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Englische Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft |