Chapter 3. Bueno -, pues -, and bueno-pues -prefacing in Spanish conversation
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Chase Wesley Raymond
Abstract
This chapter reports on two turn-initial particles in Spanish: bueno and pues. While previous research has equated both of these to well-prefacing in English in that they project “unexpectedness”, here the aim is to explicate the distinct interactional work that each particle performs. Focusing on responses to questions, I show that bueno-prefaced responses do not overtly problematize the prior utterance, but rather accept its terms before departing from them, and thereby acquiesce to the prior turn’s design. Pues-prefaced responses, by contrast, are directly addressed to the prior turn, but they cast that prior turn’s action or design as problematic in some way. I conclude by illustrating how these two uses are not mutually exclusive by examining the compound preface bueno-pues.
Abstract
This chapter reports on two turn-initial particles in Spanish: bueno and pues. While previous research has equated both of these to well-prefacing in English in that they project “unexpectedness”, here the aim is to explicate the distinct interactional work that each particle performs. Focusing on responses to questions, I show that bueno-prefaced responses do not overtly problematize the prior utterance, but rather accept its terms before departing from them, and thereby acquiesce to the prior turn’s design. Pues-prefaced responses, by contrast, are directly addressed to the prior turn, but they cast that prior turn’s action or design as problematic in some way. I conclude by illustrating how these two uses are not mutually exclusive by examining the compound preface bueno-pues.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Chapter 1. Introduction 1
-
Sequential departures
- Chapter 2. Nu -prefaced responses in Russian conversation 25
- Chapter 3. Bueno -, pues -, and bueno-pues -prefacing in Spanish conversation 59
- Chapter 4. Two types of trouble with questions 97
- Chapter 5. Diverging from ‘business as usual’ 119
- Chapter 6. Turn-initial particles in English 155
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Epistemic and Related Issues
- Chapter 7. A -prefaced responses to inquiry in Japanese 193
- Chapter 8. Treating something as self-evident 225
- Chapter 9. Reformulating prior speaker’s turn in Finnish 251
- Chapter 10. Turn design and progression 287
- Chapter 11. Making up one’s mind in second position 315
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Sequence Management
- Chapter 12. Calibrating an agnostic epistemic stance in Swedish conversation 341
- Chapter 13. Turn-initial voilà in closings in French 371
- Chapter 14. Turn-initial naja in German 413
- Chapter 15. Justifying departures from progressivity 445
- Appendix 477
- Author Index 481
- Subject index 485
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Chapter 1. Introduction 1
-
Sequential departures
- Chapter 2. Nu -prefaced responses in Russian conversation 25
- Chapter 3. Bueno -, pues -, and bueno-pues -prefacing in Spanish conversation 59
- Chapter 4. Two types of trouble with questions 97
- Chapter 5. Diverging from ‘business as usual’ 119
- Chapter 6. Turn-initial particles in English 155
-
Epistemic and Related Issues
- Chapter 7. A -prefaced responses to inquiry in Japanese 193
- Chapter 8. Treating something as self-evident 225
- Chapter 9. Reformulating prior speaker’s turn in Finnish 251
- Chapter 10. Turn design and progression 287
- Chapter 11. Making up one’s mind in second position 315
-
Sequence Management
- Chapter 12. Calibrating an agnostic epistemic stance in Swedish conversation 341
- Chapter 13. Turn-initial voilà in closings in French 371
- Chapter 14. Turn-initial naja in German 413
- Chapter 15. Justifying departures from progressivity 445
- Appendix 477
- Author Index 481
- Subject index 485
