Intensifiers and Subjectification: Evidence from Mandarin Chinese Intensifier 'Chao' in BBS Postings
Posted: 21 Nov 2008
Date Written: October 19, 2008
Abstract
The aim of the paper is to analyze pragmatic functions and grammaticalization of Chinese chao 'very, extremely', deriving from chao ji 'super' since the emergent intensifier has intriguing properties that make it different from its original form, chao ji. Chao ji originally is an adjective which modifies nouns beyond their normal scales such as size or height. That is, chao ji just modifies something that can be measured objectively since there is an assumed degree in speakers' minds. However, chao ji in Bulletin Board System (BBS), a multifunctional system that performs functions such as reading news and exchanging messages, has another function. It mostly is an adverb and modifies subjective things like personal judgments or emotions since canonical intensifiers, such as hen, fei chang, which are overused and lose their powers of intensity, cannot satisfy speakers' requirements of communication to express their opinions. Different from original modifying function, chao ji in BBS postings can be an intensifier that heightens or lowers on some expressions. Later, chao ji is morphologically and phonologically reduced to chao. In addition to the function of strengthening personal opinions, chao also serves as a focus marker which implies that what the speaker is going to say is important and he/she wants readers to pay attention to it. With the previous two pragmatic functions, chao strongly represents writers' subjective beliefs toward their own propositions in BBS postings. That is, the meaning change of chao is a kind of subjectification and the possible reason of subjectification is that BBS writers hope readers can gain better comprehension in the system lacking a 'real' interaction.'
Keywords: intensifiers, subjectification, cognitive linguistics
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation