Urpo Kovala Theories of Context , Theorizing Context (original) (raw)
Related papers
Context and contexts: Parts meet whole?
Journal of Pragmatics, 2013
Context and Contexts: Parts meet whole?, edited by Anita Fetzer and Etsuko Oishi, is a new contribution to the field of discourse studies and pragmatics explicitly focused on the ubiquitous, but also notoriously underdetermined, notion of context. Because the concept is evidently indispensible in language studies, there is a true need for reliable research and intellectual effort to inform both expert understanding of context-related phenomena and the role that the notion can play in elucidating linguistics, language processing and communication in general. In this light, the book is a welcome contribution to the ongoing dispute on the nature and scientific-methodological description of the phenomenon. In the ''Introduction'', Anita Fetzer and Etsuko Oishi, provide a concise and reliable summary of contemporary approaches to context as organized ''in'' and ''through'' communication, perceived as a process or a product, with due attention paid to the concept of time as dynamically coordinating ''being'' and ''becoming'', and ''the context-dependence of context'' (p. 4) which itself is ''a multilayered complex network'' (p. 2). This introductory part, which sketches the background for the contents of the volume, may itself provide many readers of lower expertise with guidance with regard to studies of context-related phenomena. The research papers are classified into three thematic sections, each of which contains three articles. The first part, entitled ''Situated meaning in context'' opens with ''Why a mother's rule is not a law: The role of context in the interpretation of Greek laws'' by Amalia Moser and Eleni Panaretou. The authors convincingly argue that speech act recognition depends not so much on the grammatical form of sentences as on the genre frame, in which they are embedded. Referring to Greek data, the authors compare functioning of deontic sentences culled from two contexts: family interactions and the domain of institutional law. Selected opinions on the nature of legal language which are cited within the text may seem contentious; for instance, it is not universally accepted that the law is basically composed of ''commands'', or that the concept of ''all-inclusiveness'' can be translated into the belief that law is supposed to ''cover every aspect of social life'' (p. 13; cf. Witczak-Plisiecka, 2007 and references within), but in its entirety, the paper offers an interesting perspective on the nature of deonticity and speech acts, especially on sentences with the internal conditional structures which involve modality. The authors argue that speech act recognition is relative to the audience's recognition of the relevant professional frame, which is why deontic legal sentences are accepted even when their form is deviant and judged as ungrammatical and never given epistemic interpretation. As ''mothers' rules do not constitute a genre'' (p. 33) and do not arise from a professional community, it cannot be expected that they, even in a very explicit form, would be treated as seriously and unambiguously as legal sentences. The authors argue that different cognitive processes are at work when people are confronted with these two genres and that features such as lexical choices and structural characteristics function as contextualization clues with grammaticality (or ungrammaticality) of legal sentences being of secondary importance. The discussion invites further comparative studies in intercultural contexts pertaining to processing grammar and specialised registers in private and institutional settings. The mechanisms behind Chávez's political discourse form the focus of the next paper, ''Fighting words: Hybrid discourse and discourse processes'', authored by Lawrence N. Berlin. Chavistic discourse, the possible dangers that it implies and linguistic ideological manipulation have for years been popular topics of analyses by both experts and young researchers (cf. Hoffman's (2010) study report). Berlin struggles with a complex and fascinating problem of how reality can be construed through discourse, and how audiences may be manipulated through exposition to, narrated rather than real, threats and ideologies; how ''manipulation of language begets manipulation of ideology'' (p. 41). Chávez is shown to produce a hybrid language, which even in the context of a televised interview has non-standard characteristics and is used to exert influence, e.g. to produce and justify a call for action, through a series of scattered iterations. It is argued that, even in an interview, Chávez can use encontextualization and contextualization in a way which suites his purposes, using www.elsevier.com/locate/pragma
Theories of Context, Theorizing Context
Journal of Literary Theory (JLT), 2014
Theories of meaning, even outspokenly textualist ones, have always dealt with the question of relevant context as well, to some extent at least. In many fields of research, the idea of an encompassing theory of context has surfaced now and then, and there have also been actual attempts at such a theory, some of which are discussed in this article. At the same time the very concept of context is difficult in many ways. The term has been said to be one of the most widely used and widely abused terms in the humanities and social sciences. Brenda Dervin claims that »there is no term that is more often used, less often defined, and when defined defined so variously as context« (Dervin 1997, 13-14). More specifically, its analytical force suffers from the fact that it encompasses such a vast array of different elements. The many concepts that clearly deal with the relationship between text and context, however in a more limited or specific way, are one proof of this.
2012
2012 ii © 2012 Università del Salento -Coordinamento SIBA http://siba2.unisalento.it eISBN 978-88-8305-092-3 (electronic version) http://siba-ese.unisalento.it iii CONTENTS 4 Translation and functionally complete units of meaning 59 4.1 Meaning as function in context 59 4.2 Applying the methodology: some examples 61 4.3 Conclusion 69 iv 5 Textual colligation and thematic progression in English 71 5.1 Theme and Rheme in the Systemic-Functional tradition 72 5.1.1 Marked and unmarked themes 74 5.1.2 Other types of marked Theme 76 5.2
CONSIDERING THE CONSTRAINTS OF CONTEXT IN THE EXEGETICAL PROCESS
Biblical and Ancient Greek Linguistics, 2023
Context has often been understood primarily in a literary sense, referring to the text appearing immediately before and immediately following the unit under investigation. Some use the term to refer to the historical setting or situatedness of a text, including such features as the significant people, places, things, and events leading up to and/or existing during the time in which the author lived and wrote. Yet neither of these notions of context is sufficient, and even taken together they do not offer a complete picture. The present article proposes a more complex (yet still workable) and delicate model of context that is rooted in sociolinguistic and cultural anthropological theory. (Article)
A Critical Investigation of the Concept of Context
2019
The idea of context and contextual relations is so widespread in all sub-disciplines of the humanities and social sciences that one might call it a key paradigm. However, exactly how theory conceives of context and how context is analyzed deserves critical examination. For various reasons, some theories’ presuppose¬tions especially can be contested. This investigation aims to clarify the idea of context and contextual relations, explore a number of critical positions, and offer a generic model for contextual analysis. Its overall argument rejects the critique that context is a sociological simulacrum, positing instead that “context” has an open and plural meaning, which needs to be modeled on a case specific basis.
THE OMNIFICENCE OF CONTEXT IN LINGUISTICS AND LITERATURE
2024
Every instance of language use is context-bound so that hardly can meaning be accounted for without making recourse to the background where the language is used. This paper examines the role of context in language and literature. With insights from Halliday, Short, and Hymes, the study explores how context could be a strong factor in accounting for the multi-valuable nature of language use. The important role of context in language use is explored and it is concluded that context is useful not only in pragmatics, but also in semantics and grammar. Any account of language use should, therefore, take cognizance of the context if a proper reckoning is to be done. Not accounting for it will not only make the submission inadequate, but also defective.
Cultural Context ‹ of a Literary Text ?
2014
There is no interpretation without contextualisation. Few scholars would question this statement, not least because including information provided by the context (broadly construed) is pervasive in interpretations across theories as divergent as New Criticism and New Historicism. Whereas there can be no doubt as to the importance of ›context‹, some rather crucial issues concerning text and context have prompted disagreement, if they have been addressed at all. The term ›context‹ itself requires clarification since it is often used rather differently and with a meaning that remains vague. It is a matter of debate which contexts are relevant to interpretation. Various models of how text and context interact have been suggested in different theories of literature. Taken together, issues such as these constitute a fundamental problem of literary theory today.