3. The conceptualization of space in signed languages: Placing the signer in narratives
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Sherman Wilcox
Abstract
In this chapter we discuss how reported communication in narrative interactions is expressed in Argentine Sign Language (LSA). We analyze data from three different types of reported communicative interactions. Working within the theory of cognitive grammar, we have proposed the concepts of Place as a symbolic structure, which is a meaningful spatial location, and placing, in which a sign is located at a position in space to create a new Place or recruit an existing Place (Martínez and Wilcox 2019). Here we expand the concept of placing to include the signer as a linguistic entity and identify a new construction we call “placing the signer”, which functions to establish referential identity between the signer and another discourse participant. We offer analyses of placing the signer constructions in LSA narratives, and we show how it also applies to fictive interactions in discourse which serve grammatical functions. Finally, we suggest that these placing constructions are manifestations of the conceptual metaphor similarity is proximity
Abstract
In this chapter we discuss how reported communication in narrative interactions is expressed in Argentine Sign Language (LSA). We analyze data from three different types of reported communicative interactions. Working within the theory of cognitive grammar, we have proposed the concepts of Place as a symbolic structure, which is a meaningful spatial location, and placing, in which a sign is located at a position in space to create a new Place or recruit an existing Place (Martínez and Wilcox 2019). Here we expand the concept of placing to include the signer as a linguistic entity and identify a new construction we call “placing the signer”, which functions to establish referential identity between the signer and another discourse participant. We offer analyses of placing the signer constructions in LSA narratives, and we show how it also applies to fictive interactions in discourse which serve grammatical functions. Finally, we suggest that these placing constructions are manifestations of the conceptual metaphor similarity is proximity
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter i
- Preface to the handbook series v
- Preface ix
- Table of Contents xi
- 1. Doing space: The pragmatics of language and space 1
-
I. Describing space through language
- 2. Deictic reference in space 23
- 3. The conceptualization of space in signed languages: Placing the signer in narratives 63
- 4. Spatiality in written texts 95
- 5. Interactional onomastics: Place names as malleable resources 125
- 6. Describing motion events 153
- 7. Discourses of place: The formation of space and place through discourse 181
- 8. Imaginary spaces in storytelling 209
- 9. Developmental perspectives on doing talk about space 251
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II. Spatial organization of social interaction
- 10. Encounters in public places: The establishment of interactional space in face-to-face openings 281
- 11. Interactional spaces in stationary, mobile, video-mediated and virtual encounters 317
- 12. The pragmatics of gesture and space 363
- 13. Distance and closeness: The im/politeness of space in communication 399
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III. Communicative resources of constructed spaces
- 14. Architecture-for-interaction: Built, designed and furnished space for communicative purposes 431
- 15. Building, dwelling, and interacting: Steps in the evolution of public space from Paleolithic to present 473
- 16. The pragmatics of linguistic landscapes 523
- 17. The pragmatics of written texts in space 549
- 18. Co-presence and beyond: Spatial configurations of communication in virtual environments 579
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IV. Pragmatics across space and cultures
- 19. Pragmatic variation across geographical and social space 611
- 20. Pragmatic variation across national varieties of pluricentric languages 637
- 21. Mapping perceptions and knowledge of language: Societal multilingualism and its sociopragmatic grounding 679
- Bionotes 715
- Author index 727
- Subject index 735
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter i
- Preface to the handbook series v
- Preface ix
- Table of Contents xi
- 1. Doing space: The pragmatics of language and space 1
-
I. Describing space through language
- 2. Deictic reference in space 23
- 3. The conceptualization of space in signed languages: Placing the signer in narratives 63
- 4. Spatiality in written texts 95
- 5. Interactional onomastics: Place names as malleable resources 125
- 6. Describing motion events 153
- 7. Discourses of place: The formation of space and place through discourse 181
- 8. Imaginary spaces in storytelling 209
- 9. Developmental perspectives on doing talk about space 251
-
II. Spatial organization of social interaction
- 10. Encounters in public places: The establishment of interactional space in face-to-face openings 281
- 11. Interactional spaces in stationary, mobile, video-mediated and virtual encounters 317
- 12. The pragmatics of gesture and space 363
- 13. Distance and closeness: The im/politeness of space in communication 399
-
III. Communicative resources of constructed spaces
- 14. Architecture-for-interaction: Built, designed and furnished space for communicative purposes 431
- 15. Building, dwelling, and interacting: Steps in the evolution of public space from Paleolithic to present 473
- 16. The pragmatics of linguistic landscapes 523
- 17. The pragmatics of written texts in space 549
- 18. Co-presence and beyond: Spatial configurations of communication in virtual environments 579
-
IV. Pragmatics across space and cultures
- 19. Pragmatic variation across geographical and social space 611
- 20. Pragmatic variation across national varieties of pluricentric languages 637
- 21. Mapping perceptions and knowledge of language: Societal multilingualism and its sociopragmatic grounding 679
- Bionotes 715
- Author index 727
- Subject index 735
