Explain about Syntax, Pragmatic, and Metalinguistics

Explain about Syntax, Pragmatic, and Metalinguistics

Thomas : Syntax is the study of  the architecture of phrases, clauses, and sentences; that is, of the way they are constructed. Syntax, which seeks to describe the  way words fit together to form sentences or utterances. One way to study syntax is to look at sentences which already know to be considered syntactically ‘well-formed’ sentences to the speakers of that language.

The Oxford Companion to Philosophy  (1995) :  Pragmatics is the study of language which focuses attention on the users and the context of language use rather than on reference, truth, or grammar.

Levinson (1983) : Pragmatics deals with utterances, by which we will mean specific events, the intentional acts of speakers at times and places, typically involving language. Pragmatics is sometimes characterized as dealing with the effects of context. This is equivalent to saying it deals with utterances, if one collectively refers to all the facts that can vary from utterance to utterance as ‘context.’

Teachit.co.uk : Pragmatics is a systematic way of explaining language use in context. It seeks to explain aspects of meaning which cannot be found in the plain sense of words or structures, as explained by semantics. As a field of language study, pragmatics is fairly new.

To discuss them it will be helpful to make a distinction between ‘near-side pragmatics’ and ‘far-side pragmatics.’ Near-side pragmatics is concerned with the nature of certain facts that are relevant to determining what is said. Far-side pragmatics is focused on what happens beyond saying.

Wikipedia.org : Metalinguistics is the branch of linguistics that studies language and its relationship to culture and society. It is the study of dialogue relationships between units of speech communication as manifestations and enactments of co-existence.

REFFERENCES

Thomas, Linda. Beginning Syntax.

Levinson, Stephen. 1983. Pragmatics, New York: Cambridge University Press.

Teachit.co.uk. pragmatics. Available on :  http://www.teachit.co.uk/armoore /lang/ pragmatics.htm. Accessed on: 9^th February 2012.

Wikipedia.org. Metalinguistics. Available on : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metalinguistics. Accessed on: 9^th February 2012.