- Department: Language and Linguistic Science
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: I
- Academic year of delivery: 2024-25
How do we manage to understand each other - most of the time very effortlessly - in communication? What is meaning, and where does it come from? This module aims to equip students with the basic conceptual tools of semantics, the study of literal meaning, and pragmatics, the study of meaning in context. Students will learn how to analyse the meanings of linguistic units at the word, phrase and sentence level, as well as how to test them using basic linguistic tests.
Occurrence | Teaching period |
---|---|
A | Semester 1 2024-25 |
To introduce students to foundational concepts in the study of meaning
To foster students’ awareness of different levels of meaning (semantic and pragmatic) and the interactions between them
To develop students’ critical reading skills of academic literature
By the end of the module students should be able to:
understand the roles of semantics and pragmatics in the construction of meaning
understand some key milestones in the development of semantic and pragmatic theory
apply linguistic tests for different inferences and other aspects of meaning
This module will cover a variety in foundational topics in semantics and pragmatics, including truth theory, reference, quantification, Gricean Pragmatics, and more.
Task | % of module mark |
---|---|
Open Exam (5 days) | 100 |
None
Task | % of module mark |
---|---|
Open Exam (5 days) | 100 |
Ongoing formative feedback will be given automatically via the VLE. For the formative essay you will receive individual written feedback.
For the summative assessment you will receive individual written feedback within the university mandated time limit.
Birner, B. J. (2023). Meaning: semantics, pragmatics, cognition. Taylor & Francis
Elbourne, P. (2011). Meaning: a slim guide to semantics. Oxford University Press, USA
Portner, P. (2005). What is meaning?: Fundamentals of formal semantics. Wiley-Blackwell