Lecture 4：Functionsof Language.ppt

Lecture four Functions of Language Liao Meizhen 1. Introduction There are many categorizations of functions of language, not in terms of the concrete specific function functions that language is put to in our daily life, such as to chat, to think, to buy and sell, to read and write, to greet people., but in terms of the more generalized functions language can perform in human communication. 2. Functions of language 2.1. Referential function The transmission of information is the first thing we think of when we consider the functions of language. Informational or referential or ideational function is associated with what objects and ideas are called and how events are described. It is “concerned with the content of language, its function as a means of expression of our experience, both of the external world and of the inner world of our own consciousness-together with what is perhaps a separate sub-component expressing certain basic logical relations”. (Halliday 1971) 2.2 Interpersonal function It is concerned with interaction between the addresser and addressee in a discourse situation and the addresser’s attitude toward what he speaks or writes about. Customer shop assistant Grandfather grandson Teacher student Husband wife Doctor patient Father son Master apprentice Men women Young old Insider outsider In-group out-group We talk about our relations with others in terms of (1) familiarity, (2) emotional distance, and (3) formality and so on. For example, the ways in which people address others and refer to themselves such