Conference talk given at Young Linguists' Seminar on 12 May 2014 in Lubli

Hubert Kowalewski

English

NEUROSURGERY ENTHUSIASTIC WOMEN SOCIETY

"So what is motivation, anyway?" Towards a comprehensive definition

Conference talk given at Young Linguists' Seminar on 12 May 2014 in Lublin</p

Hubert Kowalewski (5199301)

The Francis Crick Institute

ZENODO

  Hubert Kowalewski“So what is motivation, anyway?” Towards a comprehensive definitionYoung Linguists’ Seminar, May 2014  Traditional approach● Linguistic sign is unmotivated (arbitrary), i.e. lack of natural connection between the form and the meaning.● Syntagmatic motivation, i.e. there is a reason why words and morphemes are combined is a certain way (cf. Saussure 1966 [1916]).  Cognitive approach● Motivation is plays some role in language on all levels of the linguistic organization (phonology, morphology, syntax, etc.) (cf. e.g. Dirven & Verspoor 2004, Taylor 2002, Łozowski 2006).● Inspiration from Peirce’s typology of signs:– indexical signs (based on contiguity)– iconic signs (based on similarity)– symbols (based on convention) (e.g. 1998 [1894])  Indexicality● According to Taylor, limited to peripheral, often non-linguistic aspects of expressions, e.g. hoarseness of voice indicating inebriation (2002).● Indexicality relies on contiguity, which is the foundation of metonymy.  Iconicity● imitative iconicity (e.g. screech)● iconicity of quantity (e.g. I caught a loooong fish.)● iconicity of sequential order (e.g. I opened the door and went out of the room.)● iconicity of proximity (e.g. I think I can trust you.) (cf. Dirven & Verspoor 2004)  Convention● Traditionally not treated as an instance of motivation; often synonymous with arbitrariness (e.g. Tabakowska 2006).● However, convention is something that enables arbitrariness, but is not identical with it.● In fact, Taylor identifies conventionality with naturalness (cf. 2002).  Concerted motivationsilverfishSILVER ⇒ contiguityFISH ⇒ similarity          Sometimes a word involves similarity, contiguity, and convention at the same time, for example:  Motivation is......convention plus all similarity and contiguity relations that linkthe form and the meaning.  What makes a comprehensive description?● acknowledging all factors of motivation (similarity, contiguity, convention)● recognizing relationships between the factors● appreciating the importance of cultural, social, and historical context, but also individual creativity● descriptive (rather than predictive) value● comprehensive ≠ exhaustive  References● Dirven, René, and Marjolijn Verspoor. 2004. Cognitive Exploration of Language and Linguistics. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.● Łozowski, Przemysław. 2006. „Podobieństwo jako przejaw niedowolności (niearbitralności) znaku językowego”. In Henryk Kardela, Zbysław Muszyński, and Maciej Rajewski (eds.). Kognitywistyka 2. Podobieństwo, 131–41.● Peirce, Charles Sanders. 1998. The Essential Peirce. Selected Philosophical Writings. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.● Saussure, Ferdinand. de. 1966. Course in General Linguistics. Trans. Wade Baskin. New York, Toronto and London: McGraw-Hill.● Tabakowska, Elżbieta. 2006. „Ikoniczność znaków i struktur językowych jako typ podobieństwa”. In Henryk Kardela, Zbysław Muszyński, and Maciej Rajewski. Kognitywistyka 2. Podobieństwo, 121–29.● Taylor, John R. 2002. Cognitive Grammar. Oxford: Oxford University Press.● Photo of silverfish by Christian Fischer; available at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:LepismaSaccharina.jpg

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"So what is motivation, anyway?" Towards a comprehensive definition

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NEUROSURGERY ENTHUSIASTIC WOMEN SOCIETY

The Francis Crick Institute

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