The Dynamic Communicative Process And The Realization Of Pragmatic Economy

This thesis discusses the realization of pragmatic economy under the theoretical framework of economic analysis.Efficiency is one of the characteristics that all human behaviors share. And human verbal communication is the most common and typical human behavior that displays this characteristic. To be efficient means to be economical, that is, to exert the least effort to get the most return. So pragmatic economy in this thesis is defined as the minimization of total resources (mainly time and energy) the interlocutors put in a process of verbal communication to fulfill the communicative goals. This thesis contends that pragmatic economy can only be realized under the dynamic communicative process and the dynamic communicative process is consisted of the two sub-concepts: the dynamic context and the interaction between the interlocutors.Greatly inspired by the economist Gary Becker's work, the author adopts the method of economic analysis in this thesis as verbal communication is viewed as a human behavior that involves the allocation of scarce resources which is the subject of economic analysis. The theory is formulated by Becker (1976: 5) as:"The combined assumptions of maximizing behavior, market equilibrium, and stable preferences, used relentlessly and unflinchingly, form the heart of the economic approach as I see it."This thesis puts forward the"Rational Man"hypothesis in verbal communication and finally concludes that the realization of pragmatic economy is the result of cooperation between the rational interlocutors who each of them seeks the maximization of their own utility.