Notes on the role of metapragmatic awareness in language use

Bibliographic Data

ID21119366
AuthorsJef Verschueren (0000-0002-4120-9068, corresponding author)
Year2022
Pages439-456
Publication date2022-07-05
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePragmatics Quarterly Publication of the International Pragmatics Association (IPrA (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1018-2101 • E-ISSN: 2406-4238
PublisherJohn Benjamins Publishing Company (PUBLISHER • NL)
DOI10.1075/prag.10.4.02ver
OpenAlexW2120958459
LanguageEN
Citations received101
References cited25

Against the background of a general theory of pragmatics, reflections are formulated on the central role of metapragmatic awareness as a specific manifestation of salience, the status of processes of meaning generation in language use in relation to the cognitive apparatus. First the notions of metalanguage and metapragmatics, as used in linguistics, are discussed. Then metalinguistic and metapragmatic phenomena are presented as reflections of metapragmatic awareness. Two ways in which indicators of metapragmatic awareness function in language use are distinguished: Their functioning as anchoring devices locating linguistic form in relation to context, and their functioning as signals of the language users’ reflexive interpretations of the activities they are engaged in. Finally, some social implications of metapragmatic functioning are discussed, in particular in relation to language ideologies and identity construction

Metalanguage · Discourse Analysis in Language Studies · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies