A Study Of Semantic Default Based On The View Of Cognitive Topology

Semantic default is a kind of particular ellipsis and occurs as a semantic slot in form. To a great degree, the theory of utterance meaning is about interpretation of default meaning, therefore, the study on semantic default plays an important role in linguistics. Semantic default develops from the previous research findings including semantic ellipsis, pragmatic ellipsis, default presupposition, implication theories and default semantics etc. Currently, the latest achievement of semantic default is reflected in default semantics represented by Jaszczolt. The main task of semantic default is to explain reasonably the construal process of default meaning and the construction process of discourse meaning, and the interpretation of meaning is related to backstage cognition of human beings. However, the previous study pays more attention to the filling and recovery of elliptical sites and seldom describes the cognition process of ellipsis. Based on the above reasons, this dissertation plans to simulate and interpret the cognition process of semantic default from the view of cognitive linguistics. This dissertation focuses on the following three questions: the first is the cognition motivation of semantic default, the second is the cognitive model of semantic default, the third is the cognitive principle of semantic default. The main content of the dissertation is shown as follows:Firstly, the topological properties in cognition and linguistics are explored and a topological approach to cognitive linguistics is put forward in this dissertation. In a narrow sense, the linguistic topological properties can be defined as “the properties being magnitude neutral, whether of size, distance, interval, or other parameters ”(Talmy,2005). In a broad sense, the linguistic topological properties should include topological connectivity and topological continuity besides topological equivalence. This dissertation combines cognitive linguistics with topology and puts forward the cognitive topological views including the view of cognitive topological equivalence, the view of cognitive topological connectivity and the view of cognitive topological continuity based on the three topological properties of topology.The view of cognitive topological equivalence is reflected in category theory and metaphor theory. According to the conceptualization mechanism of topological assimilation put forward by Yin Shihai(2012), everything including language of the same kind in the world shares the same property despite of apparent difference between them, that is, the topological property, human beings categorize things according to topological properties, in other words, things that own the same topological properties should belong to the same category. According to the invariance principle of metaphor theory(Lakoff,1990), metaphorical mappings preserve the cognitive topology(this is, the image-schema structure)of the source domain. On one hand, the mutual topological properties and topological structure shared by two domains bridge two topological spaces and serve as a premise for a metaphor; on the other hand, the topological properties and structure must be preserved in the metaphorical mapping process which provides a foundation for understanding a metaphor.In the view of cognitive topological connectivity, cognitive models such as frame, script, schema, ICM and mental space can be regarded as mental topological spaces, it is connected not only within topological spaces, but also connected relations are established between topological spaces in the ways of mapping or projection, in this sense, language can be treated as a connected network. The phenomenon of “why an incoherent discourse due to semantic default can still be understood as a coherent discourse” can be explained from the view of cognitive topological connectivity. As we know, semantic default will lead to the incoherence of discourse apparently, it is the mental coherence which can help us to understand an incoherent discourse as a coherent discourse. The mental coherence is embodied in topological connectivity of cognitive structure when we understand discourse with semantic default. If only the degree of semantic default in a linguistic expression doesn’t break the topological connectivity of cognitive structure, a part of default information can’t influence the whole understanding of discourse, therefore, the cognitive motivation of semantic default is based on the topological connectivity of linguistic topological spaces. The realization process from semantic default to discourse coherence can be also explained from the view of cognitive topological connectivity. The incompleteness of linguistic expression is disconnected in form, it doesn’t mean disconnection in mental. Human beings have cognitive ability to organize incomplete figure into a complete gestalt, similarly, we can organize an incoherent discourse into a coherent discourse gestalt.The levels of linguistics can be regarded as mental topological spaces in the view of cognitive topological continuity, there is no obvious boundary between different levels, there exists an intermediate zone between linguistic spaces that forms a continuum, which is consistent with the continuity view of cognitive linguistics. Formal linguistics holds the module view of language, that is, language can be divided into various levels such as lexicology, grammar, semantics and pragmatics and the like. However, cognitive linguistics objects to the above module view and assumes that there is no obvious boundary between levels, language knowledge comes from language use and has no difference from language competence, which should belong to a part of encyclopedic knowledge. The view of encyclopedic semantics and lexicon-grammar continuum in cognitive linguistics reflect continuity of language, which is consistent with the view of cognitive topological continuity.Secondly, the interpretation process of default semantics can be regarded as a dynamic integration process in this dissertation, which considers the merits and properties of the previous integration models into the cognitive mechanism of semantic default and discourse coherence and constructs a conceptual integration topological network based on the view of cognitive topology and the view of cognitive integration. This cognitive model involves in three subprocess including activation, connection and integration and unifies views of activation, connection, integration and topology into a mutual cognitive model. The cognitive model of a conceptual integration topological network is applied to describe the process of construction of default meaning and discourse meaning. The detailed description is shown as follows: explicit information in a linguistic expression can activate relevant mental topological spaces, elements in spaces and topological structure of spaces, explicit information and activated invisible information can form a connected network, which can be further integrated into a construal gestalt, which is a gestalt cognitive topological structure and can lead to human beings to understand a incoherent discourse into a coherent discourse, that is, the coherence of discourse containing semantic default is realized through this cognitive model.Based on the cognitive principle of default semantics represented by Jaszczolt, this dissertation distinguishes cognitive principles of semantic default between speakers and listeners. Four cognitive principles are put forward including principles of prominence, conservation of information, intentionality and relevance. On one hand, during the process of linguistic expression and application of semantic default, speakers should abide by principle of prominence, the latest useful informatiton should be stand out in communication, the known information should be omitted and keep a status of semantic default. In addition, speakers need to consider cognitive environment and cognitive ability of listeners and keep the total information volume constant, if listeners know more information, speakers should express less information and vice versa, that is, principle of conservation. On the other hand, during the process of understanding utterance and inteprating default meaning, listeners need to abide by principles of intentionality and relevance in the cognitive stages of activation, connection and integration. The semantic content construed by listeners should establish the optimal relevance with intention of speakers, and listeners can understand the communication intention and actual implication of speakers.In sum, the dissertation provides a new approach to cognitive linguistics by introducing topology into it and plays an enlightening role in interdisciplinary study and has a reference significance for other linguistics branches. The cognitive motivation of semantic default is revealed and the cognitive mechanism of semantic default is established under the theoretical frame of the view of cognitive topology, which enriches the study of semantic default and promotes its development. The study of semantic default in this dissertation is upgraded to the theoretical altitude of level of discourse analysis, which is a part of discourse meaning intepretation theory and reflects importance of semantic default in discourse analysis.