COGS 100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Pragmatics
29 May 2015
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Document Summary
Define pragmatics, and explain (with examples) how using language in context and for a specific purpose influences what people choose to say & how they choose to say it. Pragmatics are a part of the social rules that lie beneath the use of our language. They help us convey actions needed to take in response. It also influences us to speak a certain way as well as to choose what to say and how. For example when i am in the car with my boyfriend driving on a chilly night, and his window is rolled down, i will choose to say "i"m cold" which would imply for him to roll up his window. Although the phrase does not tell him specifically "can you roll up with window it"s getting cold in the car" but simply "i"m cold", the pragmatics of this sentence help him know what action to take next.
