Post on 04-Apr-2018
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7/30/2019 Pragmatic conditionals
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
pragmatic conditionals
conditional pragmatics
jean-franois bonnefoncnrs and universit de toulouse
guy politzercnrs and institut jean nicod
august , nd london reasoning workshop
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
overview
the paradox of the pragmatic component
Whatever the future grand theory of conditional reasoningwill be, it will require a pragmatic component.
content and context effects on interpretation andinference are consensually important, and are expected toexplain an awful lot. . .
and yet the pragmatic component is often the leastdeveloped in current theories.
Maybe because pragmatics is all too often used to explainstuff away. Maybe because we cast too wide a net.
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
overview
the boundaries of the pragmatic component
suggestion (constrain the explananda)
That the component must explain the pragmatic dimension ofconditional reasoning does not mean it has to explain everythingpragmatic that can happen when reasoning conditionally.
We offer a rule of thumb to determine what the componentshould explain and what is off its explanatory limits.
Should handle broad sets of results:
inferences from exotic pragmatic conditionals inferences derived from classic conditional pragmatics.
Should certainly handle the intersection of these sets.
Might safely ignore (for now) the exclusion of these sets.
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
pragmatic conditionals
preliminary characterization
What is the purpose of an ifp then q conditional?
Often to inform of a (causal, temporal. . . ) relation
between p and q:(1) a. If Elizabeth dies then Charles will become King;
b. If thats the Brussels plane the next one is to Berlin.
Some conditionals have another illocutionary force;
Often involve considerations of decision-theoretic utility;
Invite conclusions without a minor premise.
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
pragmatic conditionals
consequential conditionals
consequential conditionals
Illocutionary force is still to inform (suggest?), but goesbeyond the causal relation.
a definitional framework for other utilityconditionals.
definition (consequential conditionals)
p is an action under the control of an agent who is neitherthe speaker nor the listener.
q is a valued (desirable or undesirable) consequence of
taking action p; q is known by the agent to be a consequence of p.
(2) a. If the ceo admits the fraud, hell serve time in jail;b. If Sophie takes this drug, shell make a good recovery.
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
pragmatic conditionals
conditional inducements
conditional inducements
Intention not merely to inform, but to induce ordiscourage a behavior through commitment to someconsequences.
definition (promises/threats)
p is an action under the control of the listener. q is an action under the control of the speaker. q is either desirable or undesirable to the listener.
p has same valence to speaker as q to listener.
(3) a. If you buy this computer, Ill throw in a box of free CDs;b. If you throw a tantrum, Ill ground you.
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
pragmatic conditionals
other utility conditionals
other utility conditionals
tips/warnings are very similar to promises/threats, butspeaker neither controls q nor has stake in p.
(4) If you throw a tantrum, your mom will ground you.
persuasion conditionals implicate that their speaker believestheir antecedent should (not) be undertaken.
(5) If the Kyoto accord is ratified, greenhouse gasemissions will be reduced.
directives and more generally deontics give indication aboutthe preferences of individuals who established oraccepted them.
(6) If I clean the house then I may have a drink.
pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
pragmatic conditionals
non-utility pragmatic conditionals
non-utility pragmatic conditionals
biscuit conditionals do not conditionalize their consequenton their antecedent, but rather the conversationalrelevance of asserting their consequent. Theirobverse is an endless source of fun.
(7) a. If you need help, my name is Pam;b. and whats your name when I dont need help?
preconditionals aka anankastic conditionals use a necessary
condition as the antecedent, and suggest that thisantecedent is far from being guaranteed.
(8) If I have some money left on Monday Ill invite youto lunch.
pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
conditional pragmatics
the invited inferences
the invited inferences
Conditionals routinely invite their obverse:
(9) a. If Guy gets a raise then hell buy a car;b. If Guy doesnt get a raise then he wont buy a car.
Linguists approach this phenomenon within the frameworkof conditional perfection. Psychologists mostly wantto explain the fallacies.
Recent psychological accounts depart from conditional
perfection in several critical assumptions: Invited inferences can occur outside conditional perfection; Conditionals may also invite their converse ; The two invitations need not occur together.
pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
conditional pragmatics
the conditional field
the conditional field
There is much more to a conditional than just twopropositions. Statement IfA, then really refers to:
(AA1 A)(BB1 B) (NN1 N)
where each ofA,B, . . . ,N would warrant the inference to, as long as complementary necessary conditionsAis, Bjs, etc. are satisfied.
All disjuncts other than As are ruled out by the invitedinference to the obverse;
The a-conjuncts are implicitly true as per expectationsof cooperativeness and relevance.
pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
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pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
intersection
obversion of pragmatic conditionals
obversion of pragmatic conditionals
Geis & Zwicky actually made their point using a promise:
(10) a. If you mow the lawn, Ill give you dollars;b. If you dont mow the lawn, I wont give you dollars.
We dont infer (10b) for scalar reasons, but rather not todefeat the whole illocutionary point of (10a).
Threats also invite their obverse, for slightly morecomplicated reasons:
(11)a. If youre home later than , Ill take away your car;b. If youre home before , I wont take away your car.
Not meaning (11b) would again make (11a) inefficient.In addition, the parent asserting (11a) has a moralobligation to mean (11b).
pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
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intersection
suppression effects
suppression effects
Conditionals come with the assumption that their cncsare satisfied;
Pragmatic conditionals invite inferences of their
ownpossibly about the cncs of other conditionals. Thus the well-known suppression effects
(12) a. If we go to room , well have free wine;b. If Mike got funding, well have free wine;c. We go to room .
(13) a. If Emma goes to the party then she buys a new dress;b. If Emma buys a new dress, she cant pay the rent;c. Emma goes to the party.
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exclusion
exclusion
Say a research appeals to pragmatic notions and predictsconditional reasoning phenomena. . .
. . . whilst not dealing with either pragmatic conditionalnor conditional pragmatics.
modus tollens, modus shmollens
(14) Carol and Didier are eating a soup;
a. If it tastes like garlic, there is garlic in the soup;b. Carol tells Didier: there is no garlic in this soup;
c. Therefore, the soup tastes like garlic.
This result constrains theories of reasoning, but notnecessarily the pragmatic component of conditionalreasoning.
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conclusion
conclusion
To accelerate theoretical development, we need to be clearabout the role we give to the pragmatic component.
We suggest that the prime explanatory targets are twobroad sets of results, pragmatic conditionals andconditional pragmatics.
The intersection of the sets is especially relevant
(obversion of pragmatic conditionals, suppression effects). We suggest to ignore for now the exclusion of these sets.
pragmatic conditionals/conditional pragmatics
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question time
pragmatic conditionals
conditional pragmatics
jean-franois bonnefoncnrs and universit de toulouse
guy politzercnrs and institut jean nicod
august , nd london reasoning workshop
http://find/