This volume invites the reader into the world of pragmatic and discourse studies in Japanese popular culture. Through “character-speak”, the book analyzes quoted speech in light (graphic) novels, the effeminate onee kotoba in talk shows, narrative character in keetai (mobile phone) novels, floating… read more
Using theoretical concepts of self, perspective, and voice as an interpretive guide, and based on the Place of Negotiation theory, this volume explores the phenomenon of linguistic creativity in Japanese discourse, i.e., the use of language in specific ways for foregrounding personalized expressive… read more
Linguistic Emotivity explores expressive and emotive meanings in Japanese from the perspective of the Place of Negotiation theory. The Place of Negotiation theory provides a framework for understanding how linguistic signs function in the place of communication (in cognitive, emotive, and… read more
The emotional aspects of language have so far not received the attention they deserve. This study focuses on nonpropositional, i.e. expressive and interactional meanings of Japanese signs, with special emphasis on understanding their cognitive, psychological and social meanings. It shows how the… read more
Edited by John Hinds, Shoichi Iwasaki and Senko K. Maynard
Within the field of Japanese linguistics, few areas have generated as much controversy as the morpheme wa; traditionally described as a marker of old or contrasted information, its function as a discourse marker has also been studied. This work aims to deepen the understanding of wa through careful… read more
This study analyzes the emotive meanings of three strategies - vocatives/reference forms, desu/masu versus da verb forms, and the use and non-use of the interactional particle yo -in a particular Mode of Japanese discourse. The research site is a television drama series, Majo no Jooken (Conditions… read more
This paper explores the thematic and interactional significance of the quotative marker tte in Japanese comics. The quotative expressions examined are 'meta-quotations', their main function being to self-qualify the quoter's speaking act. Although a similar use is observed in the standard quotation… read more
This paper examines the nature of questioning in Japanese by concentrating on questions taking the so-called n(o) da construction, i.e., "commentary questions" or CQs. Going beyond the cognitive and pragmatic features associated with "commentary predicates" explored in my earlier study, I argue… read more
This paper examines three ways in which thematic relations are realized in Japanese text. Scholars in the past have focused on limited cases of thematization in Japanese — mostly realized by the thematic particle wa from the given-new information perspective. Following and advancing this tradition,… read more
