新媒体科普话语亲近性构建:基于TED演讲语篇的词块研究

Constructing proximity in science popularization discourse in new media contexts:Evidence from lexical bundles in TED talks

本文通过考察英语TED演讲语篇的词块特征,探讨新媒体语境下科普话语的亲近性构建,进而揭示其科学传播模式。目标词块结合语境的分析发现,TED呈现出投入亲近和成员亲近的矛盾统一,既不属于缺失模式,也不是民主模式,更接近对话模式。研究反映了科普话语重构科学知识的同时致力于拉近与受众的距离,以推进科普的民主进程,但同时彰显专家身份,伴有推销目的的渗入。本文将词块研究拓展到口语语篇,进一步验证了词块是话语的重要构筑砌块,在研究路径上实现了从话语策略到社会意义的跨越,深化了对科普话语人际意义的理解。

This study explores the extent to which phraseological configurations in TED talks encode proximity,thus demystifying the popularization model TED talks take.The analysis reveals the dilemma which involves seesawing between proximity of commitment and proximity of membership.The findings trigger reflections on the model of popularization:neither deficit nor democratic,but a dialogue model is identified as more suited to delimit the TED talk genre.Other than merely communicating the lay version of knowledge,TED talks are devoted to both a democratic means of communication with mitigated speaker-audience asymmetry and also to a promotional agenda not dissimilar to that of advertising.This study extends applied lexical bundle research to non-academic spoken genres,confirming the status of lexical bundles as building blocks of discourse.Though language-centered,this study has an overt sociological intent to contribute insights into the interpersonality in popularization.