Relevance Theory

Zeinab Nasrollahi

Table of Contents

Introduction to relevance theoryInferential nature of communicationSemantic representationContext and the principle of relevanceDescriptive and Interpretive useExamples

3

Relevance Theory

Approaches communication from the point of view of competence rather than behavior Gives an explicit account of how the information-processing faculties of our mind enable us to communicateTherefor, we are dealing with mental faculties rather than text or text production

4

Relevance Theory

Is not a descriptive-classificatory approachTries to understand complexities of communication in terms of cause-effect relationship Provides a natural basis for an empirical account of evaluation and decision-making

5

Relevance Theory in Translation

Translation is being looked as a part of communicationRecent models of translation treat translation as a code model, i.e. communication as a matter of the encoding, transmission and decoding of messagesTranslation is best handled as a model of communication

6

Inferential Nature of Communication

The crucial mental faculty that enables human beings to communicate with one another is the ability to draw inference from people’s behaviorVerbal and non-verbal communicationLinguistic communication is the strongest possible form of communication

7

Semantic Representation

Refers to mental representations that are the output of language module of the mindLanguage module of the mind handles only linguistic data, thus the produced semantic representations are not fully truth-conditional and completeOnce a mental representation has been processed and completed to become fully truth conditional, it is said to have a propositional formContext determines inference of audiences 8

Context and the Principle of Relevance

A context is a psychological construct, a subset of the hearer’s assumptions about the world, i.e. cognitive environmentCognitive environment takes into account various external factors but places the emphasis on the information they provide and its mental availability for interpretationCognitive environment comprises a very huge amount of very varied information, thus misunderstanding may occur.

9

Context and the Principle of Relevance

The effort one makes in comprehension will modify the contextual assumptions brought to the communication act Context modification or contextual effects, are of three kinds:

Derivation of contextual implicationStrengthening or confirming of assumptionsElimination of assumptions

10

Derivation of contextual implication

A: Could you have a look at my printer?B: I’ve got an appointment at 11 o’clockAssumptions:

There are 5 minutes to 11; the problem needs to be opened up; and it will take more than 5 minutesB is not able to take a look at it

Contextual implication as a result of the above assumptions 11

Confirming of assumptions

A: I have a hunch that gill is looking for a new job.B: Yeah, she is studying job ads.

Assumption:Someone reading job ads is probably looking for a new job

Assumptions can be held with varying degrees of strength and this strength increases when implied by additional assumptions

12

Elimination of assumptions

A: We have to postpone the meeting because Linda is not coming B: No, I just saw Linda coming

When two assumptions contradict each other, and one found to be stronger than the other, the device in our mind erases the weaker assumption

13

Relevance Condition

Extent condition 1: an assumption is relevant in a context to the extent that its contextual effects in this context is large. Extent condition 2: an assumption is relevant in a context to the extent that the effort required to process it is small

Large contextual effect Small effortThese factors are context-dependent

Relevance is context-dependent14

Optimal Relevance

Expectation on the part of the hearerAdequate contextual effect

at Minimal processing cost

These factors are context-dependentRelevance is context-dependent

An utterance must achieve adequate contextual effect and put the hearer to not unjustifiable

effort in achieving them15

People do not always say what they mean Ex: I have a thousand things to do.

Non-literal language allows for very economical communicationInterpretive resemblance: The relationship between what we say and what we intend to communicate

16

Descriptive and Interpretive Use

A thought is a mental representation that has a propositional form. Mental representations sharing logical properties resemble each other, called interpretive resemblance Resemblance does not have to be complete

Jack bought a new MercedesFor my colleague only the best is good enough

The same contextual implication 17

Interpretive resemblance between propositional forms

To the extent the utterances have propositional forms, they can be used either descriptively or interpretively

A: I have poor appetite these daysB: Maybe it’s the Chernobyl accidentA: Do you really think so?B: Actually, no; but Chernobyl gets blamed for anything these days

Explicature: Analytic implications which the communicator intends to conveyImplicature: contextual assumption which the communicator intends to convey

18

Interpretive resemblance between thoughts and utterances

Natural language can convey information non-representationally

Hello or GoodbyeGoodbye and bye bye

Relevance is context-dependent thus interpretations are context-dependent The main purpose of utterances is to convey the set of assumptions which the communicator intends to convey

19

Interpretive resemblance between utterances

20

Examples in Translation of DMs from English into Persian

Translation of Drama (Gharashi, 2013)

HOWARD: Sh, for God’s sake!

HIS SON: It’s nine o’clock, Bulova watch time. So I have to go to sleep.

هیس! تورو خداهوارد: ساعت نه شده. من میرم بخوابم پسر هوارد:

Death of a Salesman (p. 55)

Analysis: In the above example, in the ST a cause-and-result relationship is signaled in the son’s utterance, stating that ‘Because it is 9:00, I am supposed to go to sleep’. In fact, the first statement is a premise to the second statement, that is the ‘conclusion’. Obviously, the same relation cannot be found in the TT due to the lack of an equivalent for the DM, so.

21

GUS: […] I hope he's got a shilling, anyway, if he comes. He's entitled to have. After all, it's his place, he could have seen there was enough gas for a cup of tea.

]...[ امیدوارم اگ�ه میاد ی�ه شیلین�گ پول ت�ه جیب�ش باشه. می گ�ن که گاس: اینه�ا گذشت�ه، داره از هم�ه که . کن�ه نگاه می تونس�ت اونه. جای اینج�ا

حداقل واسه درست کردن یه فنجون چایی گاز باشهThe Dumb Waiter (p. 10)

Analysis: ‘After all’ is here intended to recognize that it is expected to access a particular set of assumptions. In fact, ‘after all’ imposes on the intended cognitive effect and the communicative principle of relevance which strengthen the assumption that the house is his and he is expected to act in a certain way. In the same vein, the TT has followed the same rule and the applied equivalent strengthens the previous assumption.

22

YOUNG BERNARD: Birnbaum flunked him! They won’t graduate him!LINDA: But they have to. He’s gotta go to the university. Where is he? Biff! Biff!

برن باوم تجدیدش کرد. بیف نمی تونه دیپلم بگیرهبرنارد: باس بهش دیپلم بدن. بیف باس بره دانشگاه. بیف! بیف کجاس؟ویلی:

Death of a Salesman (p. 80)

Analysis: In the ST, a contradiction exist between the two segment of the utterance through the interpretation of the DM, but. Such a contradiction cannot be seen in the TT text since no equivalence is given for this DM.

23

THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION