Co-construction of meaning in intergenerational family conversations: A case of the Japanese demonstrative pronoun are

The Japanese demonstrative pronoun are in intergenerational family conversations will be investigated. Little consideration of the retrieval of its referent in previous studies on demonstratives delimits the explanation of various functions in natural settings.;This interactional sociolinguistic analysis of the Japanese demonstrative pronoun are in the multigenerational family conversational context provides a new approach to demonstratives such that the retrieval is a collaborative process among interlocutors. In addition to illustrating various collaborative processes of reference retrieval, this study alludes to a possible correlation between the excessive use of unclear reference, that is, are by the elderly member and aging. This hypothesis derives from the gerontological research which documents augmented use of ambiguous pronouns in elderly discourse.;Previously recognized functions of are include deictic and anaphoric uses, as well as the function of filler to achieve conversational smoothness. This study categorizes the filler function within a forward-pointing use (Lyon 1977), which is used to refer to something in subsequent discourse. Such use of are not only delays the next item due, as in filler, but also introduces an item in discourse thus draws the listener's attention.;Other functions identified in this study highlight the collaborative aspect of reference retrieval among family members. These pronouns are unheralded in the sense that the referent does not overtly appear in discourse. The ways in which the recognition of the referent is displayed in conversation manifest the shared knowledge of interlocutors. When the referent is in their shared knowledge, the addressee shows her acknowledgement by various interactional moves. When the referent is not in their shared knowledge, it yields co-construction of meaning by the family members. The activity of co-construction elicits the participants' active involvement in clarifying the referent. Thus co-construction of meaning of are is considered a mutually-oriented involvement strategy, through which family members reinforce their solidarity.;By comparing the distributions of are in other interactional contexts including conversations among friends and medical interviews, this study finds that co-constructional use occurs exclusively in family conversations. This further suggests that the co-construction of meaning is a normative activity in intergenerational family conversations.