Focus Semantic Function, Structural Characteristics, And Cognitive Characteristics

Focus is the part of which the teller wants to emphasis in one sentence. In the final analysis, focus is a pragmatics concept, its semantic function is emphasize or stress, and it must reflect in the sentence structure, focus is inclined to use specific sentence type, at the same time, the expression of focus reflects the cognitive characteristic.1. The semantic function of focusThe semantic function of focus is emphasize or stress, the sentence of "BA" can reflect this, if we define the sentence of "BA" as " A-BA-B-VP", no matter what focus it has, it also the teller wants to emphasize. The sentence type of "SHI-DE" and the sentence which has sensitive operator can also reflect this.2.The structive characteristic of focusThe sentence of "BA" and the sentence of "SHI......DE" are specialsentence type, they convery special "deal with "and "stress ", they can not be changed by other types, we can include that focus is inclined to use special sentence type. The sentence which has sensitive operator can not be regarded as one sentence type, but we can say it has symbol, and in a broad sense, special type is also a symbol, so they all reflect the structive characteristic of focus.3. The cognitive characteristic of focusFocus reflect the cognitive characteristic of human being.First is iconicity, including distance iconicity, amount iconicity, order iconicity, symbol iconicity and so on.Second is that focus reflet boundary .