Analysis Of Functions Of Discourse Markers In Theresa May's Public Speeches

Discourse markers exist pervasively in people's daily life.As a language device,it can not convey any propositional meaning,but they can affect the speakers' expression of emotion and the listeners' understanding to discourse.The research of discourse markers originated from 1970 s.Up to now,more and more linguists and scholars have systemically researched them,which have important pragmatic functions in people's communication and draws the attention of scholars at home and abroad.The three major functions of discourse markers and Relevance Theory have been used by many scholars to analyze various linguistic discourses.Meanwhile,as common discourses in political corpora,the speeches of Theresa May are very convincing and aggressive,so it is worth analyzing.After a brief review of relevant studies on discourse markers,the thesis used the data taken from Theresa May's public speeches,analyzed the main pragmatic functions both qualitatively and quantitatively,using Antconc3.2.0 software.The following four research questions are: 1.which discourse marker has the highest frequency? 2.What role do various discourse markers play in the speeches? 3.What are the characteristics of Teresa May's speech style? 4.What are the factors that influence the use of discourse markers in various speeches? The analysis of the data reveals that: First,the sequential marker has the highest frequency,and the frequency of occurrence of and,but,so is the highest.The information intensifying marker ranks the second,such as: all,just,and today.Tactic markers and attitudinal markers are third and fourth.I know,it means,and that means are the most frequently appearing tactic markers,while I think and I believe are typical attitudinal markers.Second,the sequential markers imply the order of development of things and keep the coherence of discourse;the information intensifying markers emphasize certain information and enrich the content of the discourse;the attitudinal markers indicating speakers' viewpoint and promote interpersonal interaction;the tactic markers act as politeness strategy and conform to the specific context.Third,Theresa May used relatively few discourse markers in political speeches and the types were single.However,there were many discourse markers in the cultural and sports activities.Compared to interpersonal interaction,Theresa May is more inclined to use sequential markers and information intensifying markers to promote speech coherence.Fourth,interaction situation,speaker role,speech community,and speech genre influence the use of discourse markers.On one hand,this thesis improves English learners' understanding of discourse markers and specific functions.Therefore,it will promote successful communication and facilitate mutual understanding.On the other hand,it enriches the studies of discourse markers and improve understanding of Theresa May's speeches.