Yes和No在叙事语篇中的功能:认知功能视角

The Discourse Function of Yes and No in Narration——A Cognitive-Functional Approach

本文从认知功能的视角探讨yes和no在叙事语篇中的功能及其动因。英语的信息是以语调组为单位推进的。在Chafe(1979,1980,1987,1994,2001)的理论中,一个语调组就是一个意识焦点,若干意识焦点构成一个关注中心,语言上体现为基本主题。在探讨中,我们始终关注yes和no的基本语义、在对话中的基本功能以及它们在叙事语篇中所处的位置。对实例的分析表明作为接续语的yes和no一般出现在两个关注中心的交界处,当信息流程、语篇推进受到干扰,需更大认知努力时,yes和no可以起无可替代的作用。

This paper aims to look into the textual function of yes and no and find out the motivation for their employment in written narratives from a cognitive-functional approach. English speech progresses in tone groups. In cognitive terms a tone group is seen as realizing a focus of consciousness and a number of such focuses may make up a super-focus, which constitutes a center of interest or a basic-level topic （Chafe 1979, 1980, 1987, 1994, 2001 ）. /n identifying the textual functions of the two words we keep in view their basic meanings, their basic functions in spoken interaction and their location in narrative discourse. Our data show that as continuatives yes and no typically occur at the boundary of two centers of interest, used irreplaceably when some perturbation occurs so that more cognitive effort is called for to further the flow of information and the flow of discourse.