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Preface and Acknowledgments
PART ONE. Determining boundaries
1. Introduction
Boundaries
At the boundaries
Five questions about formulaic language
The structure of the book
2. Conceptualizing formulaic language
Introduction
Orientation: what is formulaic language?
Definition: the morpheme equivalent unit
Three key conceptual claims about morpheme equivalent units
The mental lexicon is heteromorphic
The content of the lexicon is determined through Needs Only Analysis
Morpheme equivalent units enable the speaker to manipulate the hearer
3. Working at the boundaries
Introduction
Conflicts between formulaicity and novelty. A clash of irregular and regular forms
Humour
When the impossible becomes possible
When the morpheme equivalent unit constrains expression
Speech errors
How idioms are processed
The question of novelty
Exploring morpheme equivalent units
4. Formulaic language and the oral tradition
Introduction
Autonomy
Formulaic language and the oral tradition
Oral texts
The nature of formulas in oral texts
Formulas as a mark of antiquity: solving an ancient mystery
The transition to written record
Formulas in written compositions
Writing: a cause or symptom of change?
5. Formulaicity in speech and writing
Introduction
Literacy and perceptions of language and the world. How we engage with language
Literacy and our world view
Written text and information
Formulaicity in language across domains
Levels of autonomy in speech and writing
Expressive autonomy in closed and open societies
Conclusion: formulaicity as a measure of autonomy
PART TWO. Locating boundaries
6. Morpheme equivalent units in the bigger picture
Introduction
The desiderata for a comprehensive model of language. Three parameters: patterns, their causes, and the principles behind them
Interactions across boundaries
Locating formulaic language in a comprehensive model
Points of reference: causes of formulaic language
To the interface
7. Evaluating models at the interface
Introduction
Generative theory
Functional grammar
Corpus-driven models
Pattern grammar
Frame semantics
The cognitive approach
Conclusion
8. Identifying formulaic material in real texts
Why is identification so difficult?
Identification and definition
Types of definition, and their implications for identification
How definitions apply to examples
Example approaches to identification through definition. Definition and identification in the case studies in this book
Two purposes of identification
Frequency
Phonological indicators of formulaicity
Form
Idiosyncrasies
Spelling
Intuition
Published lists and corpora
Mixed criteria
Bespoke designations
Conclusion
9. A diagnostic approach to identifying morpheme equivalent units
Introduction
Intuition as a tool
The criterion-based approach
Validation
Notes on applying the diagnostics effectively
Eleven diagnostic criteria for assessing intuitive judgements about formulaicity
Using the diagnostic criteria
Examples of the diagnostic criteria in action
Conclusion
PART THREE. Studies at the boundaries
10. TESSA: a case study in machine translation
Overview
The design of the TESSA system
TESSA and morpheme equivalent units
11. TALK: a formulaic approach to supporting communication in the speech-disabled
Overview
Introduction
TALK in action: some observations
Conclusion
12. Formulaic language learning: the beginner
Overview
Introduction
The study
The data
Analysis. To what extent were memorized strings successfully recalled?
Where were errors and pauses located?
What errors were made?
Conclusion
13. Formulaic language learning: advanced
Overview
Introduction
Design. Participants
Procedure
Data
Quantification
Analysis. Were all participants equally able to memorize and recall nativelike material?
What were the limitations on reproducing memorized material in a real conversation?
What sorts of conversations were most receptive to the anticipation and effective reproduction of useful material?
What sorts of changes were made when memorized material was not perfectly reproduced?
Can individual profiles of performance indicate linguistic strengths and weaknesses?
Conclusion
14. Meanings of the parts and meaning of the whole
Overview
The case
What does ‘coonass’ really mean?
How we make meaning
Conclusion
15. Formulaicity and naturalness in a French and Saunders sketch
Overview
Introduction
Naturalness as a goal in acting
The Extras by French and Saunders
Naturalness in The Extras
Symptoms of ‘naturalness’ and ‘unnaturalness’
Why did French and Saunders sound more natural than Briers and McEwen?
Modelling the routes to naturalness in The Extras
The risks of ‘naturalness’
Conclusion
PART FOUR. Examining the boundaries
16. Formulas as the default
Introduction
Evidence for the default
Unawareness and tolerance of irregular forms within morpheme equivalent units
The ‘Royal Highness’ paradigm
Harry Potter and the formulaic spells
Incomplete intuitions, relative to objective evidence
Accounting for poor intuitions
The acquisition of logical forms
The default position in extremis
Clinical evidence for formulaicity as the default
Idiom comprehension
Conclusion
17. Origin and dynamics of formulaic language
Introduction
How would the default have come about? Formulaicity and language evolution
Formulaic language to the rescue
Formulaic language first
A modern example
Continuity
Shifting the default boundary
Idealized scenarios of language use and language change
Realizations of esoteric and exoteric communication
Different default boundaries and communication
Different formulaic knowledge
Choices about group membership
Conclusion
18. Formulaic language learning in adults
Introduction
Establishing the boundary between formulaic and analytic engagement
Units of language knowledge
The circumstances of learning
Learning in different situations
Making formulaic learning work
Limitations of formulaic learning in adulthood
Opportunities for learning in a new way
Conclusion
19. Teaching language to computers
Introduction
What units are most appropriate for natural language processing by computer?
The representation of meaning
Unit size
Could computers acquire a language like a child?
Applying NOA to computer language learning
Conclusion
20. Formulaicity under pressure
Introduction
Formulaicity for basic proficiency
Formulaicity for fluency
Formulaicity for fidelity
Formulaicity for greater accuracy
Risk-taking in memorization
Verbatim memorization in acting
Taking risks in memorization
The calculation of risk by language learners
Risk as an index of proficiency
Memorization as a route to success
Conclusion
21. Formulaic language, formulaic thought
Introduction
Formulaic sequences for social control
Formulaic language as a straitjacket
The inherent constraints on creativity of a holistic protolanguage
Modern-day constrained signalling systems
Motor racing flags
Nautical flags
Military trumpet and bugle calls
Patterns of constraint in limited signalling systems
Conclusion
22. Across the boundaries
Introduction
Taking stock at the boundaries
Formulaic language and the challenges of communication. How formulaic language assists communication
1: An elderly person with an acquired communication disorder
2: In the care home
3: Enter the professionals
4: Non-native speaker carers
Addressing the complex problem using formulaic language
Opportunities for future research
Adult language learning
Computational linguistics
Forensic linguistics
Performance
Communication disorders
Final word
References
My aim in the present book and my previous work has been to assemble specific evidence regarding the nature of formulaic language and to develop theoretical models that can explain it. Part of that endeavour entails evaluating the applicability of an explanation at the extremes of its range, and that is why this book is about boundaries. As the Introduction explains, it is not to be expected that all linguists agree with my conclusions, nor does it matter. What matters is that we continue to extend our exploration until, by degrees, we establish clearer boundaries between what is and is not formulaic.
The book has been in the planning for several years, during which I have talked to many people, engaged in huge amounts of email correspondence, read a lot of books and papers, and listened to a great many conference presentations. Some forums have been particularly valuable in inspiring new ideas, including the 2005 Phraseology conference in Louvain-la-Neuve, the 2007 Formulaic Language Symposium at Milwaukee, and the Cardiff meetings and international postgraduate conferences of the Formulaic Language Research Network. Even though I try to keep notes of conversations, useful quotes and so on, it is certainly possible that I have appropriated others’ ideas without realizing it. If I have, I apologize, and trust it will be construed as flattery.
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Part Four returns to the five questions outlined above, drawing on the contextualization and theory from Parts One and Two, the studies reported in Part Three, and also other lines of evidence, including Harry Potter’s spells, flag signals and military bugle calls, language teaching in Papua New Guinea, Aviation English, communication in pre-modern man, cryptic crosswords, actors’ attitudes to their script, and the Cultural Revolution in China.
Finally, Chapter 22 reviews the results of ‘pushing the boundaries’, before demonstrating how an understanding of how formulaic language operates can result in practical applications. The chapter ends with some ideas for future research projects on formulaic language.
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