“it”的篇章功能研究——以卡梅伦的两次演讲为例

A Study on the Textual Functions of "it":With Cameron's Two Speeches in Scottish Independence Referendum Campaign as Examples

"it"作为一个涵义丰富、运用灵活的代词,在语篇中往往发挥着重要的语法作用,并承担着衔接功能。在政治语篇中,"it"还有着特殊的修辞效果。通过对比英国首相卡梅伦在苏格兰独立公投前后所做的两次演讲文本,分析其中"it"的用法和功能,揭示在政治语篇中,"it"用作形式主(宾)语时可以强调说话人的客观立场,同时通过模糊指称功能,能够帮助政治家提高交际效率,使其得体地达到政治目的。

Being a profound and flexible pronoun, ＂it＂ functions significantly both in grammatical structure and tex tual cohesion. In political texts, it exerts unusual rhetorical functions as well. By contrasting and analyzing the two important speeches delivered by David Cameron, Prime Minister of UK, before and after the Scottish Independence Referendum in Sept. of 2014, we found ＂it＂ can effectively emphasize the speaker＇s stance while functioning as the formal subject or object of a sentence. Meanwhile, the fuzzy reference function of ＂it＂ can promote politician＇s com- munication efficiency and help them achieve their political goals properly.