A Pragmatic Study On L1 And L2 Mental Lexicons And Its Pedagogical Implications For L2 Lexis

Vocabulary is one of the indispensable components of the language system. It plays a crucial role in the teaching and learning of an Fl/L2. Linguists and researchers have approached the field of vocabulary from different perspectives. In the past few decades, there emerged a psychological and cognitive tendency towards vocabulary research. This approach focuses on language learners'mental lexicon, trying to make clear how a language learner's brain recognizes, stores, organizes and retrieves words. It has been approached phonetically, syntactically, semantically and phonemically. Some positive conclusions have so far been drawn and are shedding new lights on FL/L2 vocabulary teaching and learning.However, studies on mental lexicon are far from adequate. A learner's vocabulary proficiency is ultimately reflected in his/her pragmatic proficiency. If we make mistakes in grammar when we speak, we are said to speak badly only; however, if we cannot speak tactfully or appropriately, we are said to behave badly (Thomas, 1995). To speak tactfully or appropriately inevitably involves the retrieval of proper words from the mental lexicon. There should be room for pragmatic considerations in the study of language learners'mental lexicon. Pragmatic studies could most probably shed fresh lights on the interpretation of mental lexicon.Based on this assumption and initiated by a growing literature on the acquisition and learning of FL/L2 pragmatic competence, this dissertation probes into the crucial roles pragmatic factors might play in the formation and the functioning of a language learner's L1 and L2 mental lexicons. It begins by an illustration of the importance of vocabulary in language learners'linguistic competence (Chapter 1) and a survey of the research literature on vocabulary and mental lexicon (Chapter 2), attempting to offer a rationale for the ongoing study. After a general consideration of lexicon and lexicon development (Chapter 3), the dissertation sets about a discussion of what pragmatic competence is and what a learner's mental lexicon appears to be, trying to find out the relationships between pragmatics and language learners'mental lexicon, particularly the contributions pragmatics would make to the building, development and functioning of one's mental lexicon (Chapter 4). Although the research emphasis falls on the exploration of language learners'L2 mental lexicon, such a research will prove illogical without leaving room for discussion of one's L1 mental lexicon since the L1 mental lexicon is closely interrelated with the L2 mental lexicon. Chapter 5 is thus dedicated to a tentative probe into the roles that pragmatics is playing in L1 mental lexicon. Beginning from Chapter 6, the dissertation deals with the L2 mental lexicon all the way to Chapter 10, specifically researching its general property, formation, representation and processing, accessing with a focus on the roles pragmatics is playing at each stage. Before winding up (Chapter 12), other pragmatic factors that contribute to one's L2 mental lexicon are included to make the story more complete and perfect.Meanwhile, special attention is paid to the pedagogical implications in the processes of the discussion for each topic. A subsection of pedagogical implications is reserved in each chapter but the concluding one to make the research more pedagogy-oriented. Chapter 11 is even all dedicated to the general pedagogical implications of the study.