Linguistic indicators of point of view
Task C - Deixis
Another way in which viewpoint can be indicated in language
is through deixis. Deixis has to do with coding information as close to
('proximal') or remote ('distal') from the speaker. Typically, deictic
expressions come in pairs in relation to this proximal/remote contrast.
Consider the place adverbs 'here' and 'there', for example. 'Here' means
'near the speaker' and so what counts as 'here' and 'there' will change
depending on who is talking. The demonstrative pronouns 'this'/'these'
and 'that'/'those' also express the proximal/distal contrast.
Deictic expressions range across the grammar of English grammatical categories,
e.g.
|
Proximal
|
Distal
|
Grammatical category
|
|
here
|
there
|
place adverbs
|
|
now
|
then
|
time adverbs
|
|
this/these
|
that/those
|
demonstrative pronouns
|
|
come
|
go
|
verbs - movement towards/ away from speaker
|
Note also that once we have seen central examples of deixis like those
mentioned above, it is easy (but perhaps not helpful?) to widen the scope
of deixis to include other factors which are viewpoint-related in language.
Are the adverbs/prepositions 'above' and 'below' deictic? They are clearly
speaker-related in most contexts, but they do not express the proximal/distal
relationship. So they are not properly deictic, but do express viewpoint
relationships. The important thing is to be aware of the different kinds
of viewpoint and the myriad of ways in which viewpoint can be expressed.
In the extract below, a white South African woman, living under the last
days of the apartheid regime, is thinking about the news in the paper
that a wild animal is invading the town where she lives and causing considerable
anxiety.
What kind of expression is 'these days', and how
does it 'position us' in relation to the woman's viewpoint? Compare your
response with ours.
Whatever it was, it made a nice change from the usual sort of news,
these days.
(Nadine Gordimer  ,
Something Out There)
Our conclusion
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