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Beyond Meaning
Edited by Elly Ifantidou, Louis de Saussure and Tim Wharton
[Pragmatics & Beyond New Series 324] 2021
► pp. 11–28

Beyond meaningNN and ostension

Pragmatic inference in the wild

| University of Malta

Inferential pragmatics is typically considered to deal exclusively with meaning that has been overtly and intentionally communicated. This paper sets out to investigate whether this established domain of enquiry can be extended to include instances of information transmission that may not be characterised by an underlying communicative intention on the part of a stimulus producer. Adopting a relevance-theoretic perspective, I argue that this can indeed be done and show how it can be quite naturally accommodated in the framework. The upshot of my argumentation in this regard is that pragmatic inference has a central role to play in interpretation even beyond the confines of what has been traditionally viewed as communication proper.

Keywords: inferential pragmatics, relevance theory, ostension, meaningnn , non-intentional communication
Article outline
  • 1.Overtness and the domain of pragmatics
  • 2.Relevance theory
  • 3.Relevance and the interpretation of non-ostensive stimuli
    • 3.1Comprehension in the absence of ostension
    • 3.2The pragmatic processing of non-ostensive stimuli
  • 4.Pragmatics and the territory beyond meaning
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 10 November 2021
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.324.c1
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Cited by (2)

Cited by 2 other publications

Yus, Francisco
2023. Relevance Theory, Humour and Internet Communication. In Pragmatics of Internet Humour, ► pp. 9 ff. DOI logo
Assimakopoulos, Stavros
2021. Interpretation, relevance and the ideological effects of discursive practice. Pragmatics & Cognition 28:2 ► pp. 394 ff. DOI logo

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