Difference- Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis, Anaphoric and Cataphoric References

Difference- Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis, Anaphoric and Cataphoric References

Outline 

• Introduction
•  Difference between Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis
•  Differentiate between Anaphoric and Cataphoric references

Introduction

Discourse analysis is a technique for examining the organization of texts or spoken phrases longer than one sentence while also considering the sociolinguistic context in which they were produced. The study of pragmatics focuses on how context affects meaning. The field of research assesses the link between the interpreter and the interpreted as well as how human language is used in social interactions.

Discourse analysis and pragmatics are sister disciplines that share a tight relationship. Because both pragmatics and discourse analysis examines how language is used in context and employ the text's structure as a shared foundation for analysis. Apart from them, there is a deviation in that their respective foci are different.

 

Difference between pragmatics and discourse analysis

The concept of context helps to distinguish clearly between pragmatics and discourse analysis. The term "context" in pragmatics refers to the setting and moment in which a communicative activity takes place. Pragmatics, therefore, focuses more on the outside or physical context. On the other hand, discourse analysis only concentrates on the linguistic context and has nothing to do with the speaker.

 

Drawing the line between pragmatics and discourse analysis depends on intention as well. Typically, a discourse analyst will explain things without using any non-linguistic aspects. However, a pragmatist frequently applies multiple spheres of human activity, such as the speaker's meaning or intention, to understand utterances.

Pragmatics, according to Birner, “uses discourse as data and seeks to draw generalizations that have predictive power concerning our linguistics competence.” It gives importance to the social principles and works from a socio-cultural perspective on language usage to examine how the principles of social behaviour are expressed. Cooperative Principles and Politeness Principles are the dimensions of pragmatics.  Discourse analysis, on the other hand, 'refers to an individual discourse, utilizing the findings of pragmatics theory to shed light on how a particular set of interlocutors use and interpret language in a particular context.'  (Birner: 2013) It focuses on “the large chunks of language beyond the sentence level” to study how these are organized and “how the social transaction imposes a framework on discourse.” In short by using the text of pragmatics and using the theories of pragmatics we can analyze discourses.

 

Differentiate between anaphoric and cataphoric references

Generally, anaphoric references indicate anything that has already been discussed in the conversation or discourse.

For instance, Septimus went to the circus. He was tensed because it was closed. In the above sentences, He refers to Septimus, and it refers to the circus.

In addition, anaphoric reference often uses the definite article ‘the’, because one of the functions of the definite article is to indicate that something has already been mentioned.

Here is another example: She sits on the chair and picks a handkerchief. The cloth looks pretty light in her hands and it has a design of a dragon.  

In the above statement, both the cloth and it refer back to the handkerchief which is used in the first sentence.

While a word or phrase making a cataphoric reference is one that refers to something that will be discussed later in the discourse or conversation.

For example; Although I help him from time to time my friend complains that I do not stand for him. In this passage, ‘him’ refers to my friend.  

Here is another example, the cat was on the bench. I’d never see Mano and I did not intend to do this. In this sentence, the cat refers to the Mano.  

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