The Pragmatics of slurs
Journal article
Bolinger, Renée Jorgensen. (2017). The Pragmatics of slurs. Nous. 51(3), pp. 439-462. https://doi.org/10.1111/nous.12090
Authors | Bolinger, Renée Jorgensen |
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Abstract | I argue that the offense generation pattern of slurring terms parallels that of impoliteness behaviors, and is best explained by appeal to similar purely pragmatic mechanisms. In choosing to use a slurring term rather than its neutral counterpart, the speaker signals that she endorses the term (and its associations). Such an endorsement warrants offense, and consequently slurs generate offense whenever a speaker's use demonstrates a contrastive preference for the slurring term. Since this explanation comes at low theoretical cost and imposes few constraints on an account of the semantics of slurs, this suggests that we should not require semantic accounts to provide an independent explanation of the offense profile. |
Year | 2017 |
Journal | Nous |
Journal citation | 51 (3), pp. 439-462 |
Publisher | Blackwell Publishing Ltd |
ISSN | 0029-4624 |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1111/nous.12090 |
Scopus EID | 2-s2.0-84923888568 |
Research or scholarly | Research |
Page range | 439-462 |
Publisher's version | License All rights reserved File Access Level Controlled |
Output status | Published |
Publication dates | |
Online | 04 Mar 2015 |
Publication process dates | |
Deposited | 19 Jan 2022 |
https://acuresearchbank.acu.edu.au/item/8x4qy/the-pragmatics-of-slurs
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