An Application Of Relevance Theory To The Analysis Of Tautology

Tautology is a term borrowed from philosophy, where it describes an argument in which the only possible truth condition is "true". This means that the argument is always true by virtue of its form. On the surface, it is a kind of redundant expression, so it seems to convey no information, but it is of special value in communication. Tautological utterances pose a question of how to understand and produce them for pragmatics because, as they are true through form alone, they would seem to offer no useful information, and so on the surface, they have no meaning. However, it's clear when you examine their use that they do carry a clear meaning.Tautology is a prevailing phenomenon in language as well as one of the controversial topics in the field of linguistics. Neither the radical pragmatics based on the conversational implicature principle nor the pure semantic analysis can explain the working mechanisms of this pragmatic phenomenon. According to the relevance theory, we believe that tautology is a kind of expression chosen by the addressor in specific contexts to achieve the cognitive effect which suits the optimal-relevance principle.From the relevance theory, we know that tautology, as a way of communicating information, is the result of the addressor's estimation of the addressee's contextual resources, so the utterance meaning of tautology can produce certain contextual effect in the addressee's cognitive environment. Furthermore, as a way of expression chosen by the addressor deliberately, tautology can meet his certain needs. So when the addressee interprets the utterance, she/he should believe that this expression conveys the optimal relevance, that is, the efforts she/he has to make ought to be in accordance with the contextual effect of the utterance. With the support of affluent linguistic evidence and some relevanttheories, the author of this paper holds that tautology is not only a linguistic reality but also a communicative necessity in many cases.This paper aims at discussing this phenomenon in order to have a clear knowledge of the nature and the positive functions of tautology. This paper firstly comments on the relevant researches and discussions made by the previous scholars, and then we apply the relevance theory to explain the interpretive mechanism of this language phenomenon from the perspective of cognitive pragmatics.The paper consists of six parts:In the introduction of this paper, the origin and definition of tautology are introduced. The significance of studying this topic is also presented.In Chapter One we review some theoretical achievements made on tautology both at home and abroad. Traditional rhetorics views it as a kind of rhetoric, which can produce positive and negative effects. Neither the radical pragmatics based on the conversational implicature principle nor the pure semantic analysis can explain the working mechanisms of this pragmatic phenomenon.Chapter TWO deals with eight types of tautology and discusses them in detail. According to the motivation of tautology, it can be divided into the following eight types:1. Inadequacies of Language2. Intended Vagueness3. Derision4. Poetic Device5. Psychological Significance6. Critical Audience7. Inept Speakers8. Obsessive-Compulsive DisorderChapter Three introduces the Relevance Theory and comments on it, which is our theoretical foundation.Chapter Four is the most important part of this paper, which applies Relevance Theory to the analysis of tautology. All in all, on the basis of the above research and debate on tautology, we have got a deeper understanding of this pragmatic phenomenon: firstly, it may express many meanings in different contexts;secondly, it can have syntactic variations;thirdly, it can exist in different languages;fourthly, there are some restrictions in the use of it;fifthly, the context and inference are involved in the understanding of it, etc. However, there still exist discrepancies among different theories.We don't think that we have exhausted the research on this topic and actually there are many issues to which we haven't found proper solutions yet. We find no approach in the above literature can explain the working mechanisms of this phenomenon and its communicative effects. However, in comparison with the previous researches, the Relevance Theory proposed by Sperber and Wilson (1986/1995) can provide more reasonable explanations to it. At first we generally introduce and give comments on the theory, which has strong explanative power in the explanation of many natural language phenomena. Then we apply it to the analysis of tautology and we find it much easier to explain it than before.Finally a conclusion is drawn. It is believed that the use of tautology is a kind of linguistic choice made by people in communication for various purposes, and it is pointed out that the most important thing concerning tautology is to use it appropriately. Appropriate use of tautology is a communicative necessity.