也谈现代汉语中的假性揣测

Pseudo-conjecture in modern Chinese

揣测性情态词的认识情态功能可在特定语境中实现语用负迁移,语义上呈现出“假性揣测”,语用上具有轻说功能。假性揣测对外维护听者面子、遵循礼貌原则,起到缓和语气、削弱语势的作用,对内突显言者的谨慎态度,为言者自身留有余地。根据其使用的语境,可分为礼貌表述型、免责陈述型、保留认同型、隐喻肯定型。假性揣测最常用于礼貌表达,本质是言者有意调节当前信息与听者预期的主观概率差而采用的语用策略,即“减反预期”。假性揣测句中的情态词不影响言者对命题确定性的判断,其认识状态与认识立场的错位总是出于某种交际意图,听者可通过语用推理得到真实的会话涵义。

The function of epistemic modal words can be negatively transferred to a pragmatic function in specific contexts,appearing“pseudo-conjecture”in semantics,and being used as a tone-softening marker in pragmatics.Externally,pseudo-conjecture protects the face of the listener and follows the principle of politeness by softening and weakening the tone.Internally,it highlights the speaker's cautious attitude and leaves leeway for the speaker himself.According to the context used,it can be divided into the polite expression type,the disclaimer statement type,the reserved recognition type,and the metaphorical consent type.Pseudo-conjecture is most commonly used in polite expressions,which is essentially a pragmatic strategy adopted by the speaker to intentionally adjust the subjective probability difference between the current information and the listener's expectation,which can be named“counter-expectation reduction”.The modal words in pseudo speculative sentences do not affect the speaker's judgment of the certainty of the proposition,and the mismatch between their cognitive state and cognitive stance is always due to some communicative intention.The listener can obtain the true conversational meaning through pragmatic inference.