合作必须是原则——兼与钱冠连教授商榷

Cooperation Must Be Principle

揭示Grice的合作原则背后的哲学思想,同时指出人们在阐述该原则时有将作为一种语用原则的合作和普通意义上的“合作”混淆起来的倾向,其直接后果就是认为合作原则要求人们在言语交际时说真话、清楚明白地提供足够的信息,否则就是不合作。这是对合作原则的误读,是对该语用学原则的哲学思想的淡化。通过全面考察Grice的哲学论述,指出合作原则只是其意义理论的一部分,意义理论又服务于他的哲学目的———揭示人的理性本质。合作原则试图揭示言语交际和其他人类行为一样是理性的,合作性是理性的一种体现。鉴于此,本文得出结论:合作必须是原则。

This article is an attempt to reveal the underlying philosophical thinking behind Grice＇ s Cooperative Principle （CP） , an assumed key concept of contemporary linguistic pragmatics. We will make it explicit that the use of the word “cooperate” and its cognates seems to have led to confusion between Grice＇ s technical sense and its dictionary reading as a lexeme. This confusion is very likely to lead to interpreting CP as a principle demanding speakers to provide true, sufficient information in conspicuous ways for the current purpose of the talk exchange. Otherwise, they are uncooperative. Since such “uncooperative interactions” are pervasive in daily communication, CP is not necessary. We argue that this is misin- terpretation which stems from a neglect of Grice＇ s philosophical thinking when we relocate CP from philosophy to linguistics. Closer inspection of Grice＇ s writings as an integrative whole reveals that it is rationality rather than cooperation that is central to CP as a conversational principle.