Pragmatics of Conditional Marking: Implicature, Scalarity, and Exclusivity

by Schwenter; Scott

• ISBN13: 9780815333098
• ISBN10: 0815333099
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1999-03-01
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Investigates the meaning of conditional markers, in particular si in Spanish and if in English, using both naturally occurring and constructed data. Argues that the hypotheticality or irrealis-ness they express is not due to the encoded semantics of the markers themselves, but rather to a Gricean scalar generalized conversational implicature of the speaker's uncertainty associated with the canonical conditional markers.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(38)
Overview	1	(8)
Conditionals	9	(12)
Outline of a theory of meaning	21	(11)
Methodology	32	(2)
Outline of the book	34	(5)
Notes	37	(2)
Conditional Markers: Semantics	39	(36)
Introduction	39	(1)
Semantic approaches to conditional protasis markers	40	(22)
Conditional markers: two types of procedural meaning	62	(8)
Conclusion	70	(5)
Notes	72	(3)
Conditional Markers: Pragmatics	75	(42)
Introduction	75	(1)
The implicature of ``uncertainty''	76	(13)
The conditional perfection implicature	89	(21)
Conclusion	110	(7)
Notes	112	(5)
Exclusivity And Conditional Marker Form I: Adversative Contexts	117	(58)
Introduction	117	(9)
Si in adversative contexts	126	(13)
Four tests to distinguish si and pero in dialogues	139	(16)
The PA/SN distinction and si	155	(14)
Conclusion	169	(6)
Notes	171	(4)
Exclusivity and Conditional Marker Form II: Scalar Contexts	175	(56)
Introduction	175	(15)
Scalar contexts and ``hybrid'' examples	190	(11)
Epistemic justification and si	201	(5)
Si and argumentative scales	206	(18)
Conclusion	224	(7)
Notes	226	(5)
Conclusion	231	(16)
Summary	231	(7)
Future research directions	238	(7)
Fin	245	(2)
Notes	246	(1)
References	247	(14)
Index	261