Key points of

Pragmatics
module
Master two
Biskra University
Summarized and Organized by:
Ms. Nawal Boudiaf
Pragmatics
 Communicative Competence

Language is not knowing only how to read, speak, listen and write but also how to use it in

a communication (matter of use and usage).

Components of Communicative Competence

 Canal and Swain

Grammatical Competence (knowing grammar, morphology, syntax and lexical items).

Sociolinguistics Competence (context and distance between interlocutors).

Strategic (knowing how to recognise and repair communication breakdowns).

Discourse (knowing how to interpret a context and construct longer stretches of language to
make cohesion).

 Bachman

Organizational Competence (grammatical competence “rules of grammar”, textual

competence “coherence & cohesion”).

Pragmatic Competence (illocutionary competence “selecting correct word to its appropriate

context”, sociolinguistic “context, culture and non-verbal communication”).

 Leech

Pragmatic Competence (pragmalinguistic competence “knowing the phrases typically used to

express a speech act”, sociopragmatic competence “knowing what is socially, culturally
appropriate in a speech community”).

Language functions (it is the speech acts” the minimal functional unit of communication”).

Discourse Styles

 Oratorical style (language for large audience with slight interaction)

 Consultative style (formal dialogue with careful choice of words)
 Casual style (used among friends, family “daily communication”)
 Intimate style (no social inhibitions)
 Deliberative (language for large audience with no interaction)
Non-verbal communication

 Kinesics = body language

 Kinesthetic = touching
 Artifacts = clothes
 Eye contact = eyes
 Olfactory = smelling
 Proxemics = space

Pragmatic failure
N.B. The present lecture is in a form of long paragraphs so we have pinpointed the main
ideas of each.

 Learning a second language for the sake of communicating.

 L2 grammar rules are not sufficient to be considered communicatively competent.
 The need of sociocultural norms to accomplish a correct and appropriate communication.
 Communicative competence encompasses grammatical competence & pragmatic
competence.
 Pragmatic competence is the understanding of a language in a context.
 The lack of pragmatic competence leads to pragmatic failure.
 Pragmatic failure may block a communication and may lead to misinterpretation.
 Pragmatic failure is the inability to understand what is meant by what is said.
 Teachers and l2 writers ignore pragmatic competence for two main reasons:
Pragmatic description still not evolved yet.
Pragmatics is not clear enough how to be taught.
 Pragmatic failure is not noticed in the superficial statement, but in the speaker’s intention.

 Teachers should teach their students the capacity to analyse the language in a conscious
way (metapragmatic capacity).
 Students should know pragmalinguistic failure and sociopragmatic failure.

Pragmalinguistic failure (the linguistic structure of L1 differs from the one of L2).

Sociopragmatic failure (the social norms of L1 differs from the L2 norms).

 Pragmatic failure takes place when two speakers fail to understand each other’s intention.
 Students should learn L2 cultural norms without changing their personalities.
 Pragmatic transfer is using one’s norms and culture in other’s language, which affect the
comprehension and production.
 Students use the speech acts according to their social norm it is a pragmatic transfer as well.

N.B. Face (the public self-image) can be either negative (have freedom of action) or
positive (appreciated and accepted by the others)

FTA (face threatening act) (threaten public image) to avoid it you should use politeness
strategies.

Potential threat of FTA depends on three factors:

 Relative power
 Social distance
 Ranking of impositions of FTA in a culture

Cultural and intercultural communication

Small C (total life of people i.e. a way of living related to a certain group of people)

Big C (production and contribution of a society ex; architecture, art …)

 Culture is the complex whole which includes capabilities (art, knowledge, beliefs) and
habits acquired by man as a member of a society.
A. Humanistic concept is the cultural heritage (masterpieces in a literature, arts, music…).
B. Anthropological concept is a way of life of a community or a society including habits,
traditions, and presuppositions.

Analytical levels

General human level: the ability of human to change and alter their environment.

Society, national level: unifying force that allows human to express themselves (government,
religious, beliefs…)

The third level: similar to the second one but deals with various societal & national subgroups
relying on age, hierarchy, sex, region…

The personal: the level of consciousness, which enables people to be aware about the
characteristics of their culture.
P.S. Culture is the forms of things that people have in mind, theirs model of perceiving,
relating and otherwise interpreting them.

Culture and life teaching

Behavioural view: realized through teaching daily practices of native speakers.

Functionalist view: realized through understanding why a native speaker act in a specific way
in a specific situation.

Cognitive view: realized through helping learners to get an insider view of the target culture.

Symbolic view: is the union between learners’ native culture and target culture to create
meaning.

P.S. Culture is dynamic. It engages an individual of a group cognitively, behaviourally,

mentally and affectively.

Intercultural communication competence

It refers to the ways that a native speaker and a foreign language learner behave
linguistically, socio-linguistically and pragmatically including learner’s personal identity,
social abilities and attitudes.

Its components

 Cognitive (knowledge)
 Pragmatic (performance of speech act)
 Attitudinal (tolerance)

P.S. Intercultural communicative competence is the extension of communicative

competence which refers to the appropriate and the effective interaction between two
different people in terms of linguistic and cultural differences.

 Learners should learn the differences between cultures and how to act in different
cross-cultural situations.
 Learners should adapt and alter themselves with the aim of understanding the
differences between L1 & L2 culture.

P.S. the following is called grammar of culture

Savoir = knowledge of self & others’ products and practices

Savoir être = intercultural attitudes to relate own values with others

Savoir comprendre = skills of interpreting

Savoir apprendre = skills of discovery and interaction

Savoir s’engager = critical culture awareness

Pragmatic ability

 Pragmatic ability is the awareness and knowledge about pragmatics and the ability to use
it.
 It encompasses the four channels that are illustrated as follows:
Listener: interpret what is & what is not said & non-verbally communicated.
Reader: comprehend written messages.
Speaker: how & what to say and not to say and what to communicate non-verbally with
politeness and directness.
Writer: how to write messages keeping politeness, directness and structure.

N.B. Pragmatic ability means to go beyond the literal meaning to interpret the intended
meaning.

Speech acts

 Illocutionary = the intended meaning.

 Each speech act has its strategies we take as an example Apology.

Expressing apology (I apologize)

Acknowledgement of responsibility

1. Accepting the blame (it is my fault)

2. Self-deficiency (I was confused)
3. Lack of intent ( I did not meant to …)
4. Expression of responsibility (I really…)
5. Not accepting the blame (it was not my fault)

Explanation or account (give a report)

Offer of repair (to repair the damage)

Promise of recurrence (not to do the damage again)