Towards a functional perspective on multimodal constructions
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Claudia Lehmann
Abstract
The paper argues in favor of taking a functional perspective on constructions. To this end, a stance-related construction, Tell me about it, and its multimodal delivery in spoken language will be analyzed on a larger scale using the NewsScape Library of International Television News (Steen & Turner, 2013). The quantitative analysis shows that stance-related Tell me about it is longer in duration, accompanied by head movements and raised eyebrows, and the withdrawal of eye contact with the recipient. These findings will eventually be treated as evidence for the view that (multimodal) constructions and some unimodal, nonverbal constructions form a network of functionally related constructions.
Abstract
The paper argues in favor of taking a functional perspective on constructions. To this end, a stance-related construction, Tell me about it, and its multimodal delivery in spoken language will be analyzed on a larger scale using the NewsScape Library of International Television News (Steen & Turner, 2013). The quantitative analysis shows that stance-related Tell me about it is longer in duration, accompanied by head movements and raised eyebrows, and the withdrawal of eye contact with the recipient. These findings will eventually be treated as evidence for the view that (multimodal) constructions and some unimodal, nonverbal constructions form a network of functionally related constructions.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Grammar and multimodality 1
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Part I. Challenges for multimodal Construction Grammar; conventionality and integration of multimodal features
- Construction Grammar, multimodal communication, and design features of language 26
- Multimodality, conventionality and inheritance in dialogic constructions 38
- Utterance comprehension in spontaneous speech 69
- The prosody of list constructions 116
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Part II. Multimodal aspects of constructions; language-specific features and cross-linguistic generalizations
- A multimodal approach to coordination in spontaneous conversation 154
- An evidential function of raised eyebrows in interaction 190
- Towards a functional perspective on multimodal constructions 220
- Contrastive negation constructions in Israeli Hebrew 251
- Pragmatic and prosodic aspects of the negative directive ðe mu les? (‘tell me’) in Greek conversation 285
- Subject index 313
- Constructions index 317
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Grammar and multimodality 1
-
Part I. Challenges for multimodal Construction Grammar; conventionality and integration of multimodal features
- Construction Grammar, multimodal communication, and design features of language 26
- Multimodality, conventionality and inheritance in dialogic constructions 38
- Utterance comprehension in spontaneous speech 69
- The prosody of list constructions 116
-
Part II. Multimodal aspects of constructions; language-specific features and cross-linguistic generalizations
- A multimodal approach to coordination in spontaneous conversation 154
- An evidential function of raised eyebrows in interaction 190
- Towards a functional perspective on multimodal constructions 220
- Contrastive negation constructions in Israeli Hebrew 251
- Pragmatic and prosodic aspects of the negative directive ðe mu les? (‘tell me’) in Greek conversation 285
- Subject index 313
- Constructions index 317
