The English Deictic Words: The definite article

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..3
1. The deixis in English…………………………………………………………………………...5
1.1 What is deixis?......................................................................................................................5
1.2 The place of deixis in pragmatics and semantics…………………………………………..7
1.3 The types of deixis and deictic expressions………………………………………………10
1.3.1 Person deixis……………………………………………………………………………10
1.3.2 Spatial deixis……………………………………………………………………………11
1.3.3 Temporal deixis…………………………………………………………………………12
2. The definite article in English…………………………………………………………………14
2.1 The definiteness and deixis: deictic use of “the”………………………………………...16
2.2 The asymmetries between the definite article and demonstratives ………………………18
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………….22
Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………………..2

INTRODUCTION

As it is known human speech is realized in a certain situation, condition and environment. In order to establish intercourse with one another human beings use language and the first and initial function of a language is to transfer a certain piece of information. This is called a transactional function in linguistics. Human beings give information to one another by order, request and instruction to one another by means of language. The whole scope of actions carried out as a result of these processes in the language is called context. It becomes clear from the context, who is pointing to somebody or something by special words which are called deixis words: here, there, I, you, he, down, up etc. Deictic words just carry out deictic function.
In the modern linguistics (it has derived from the Greek word deixnumi) it gives the meaning of “to indicate”, “to show”, “to point to”. This word traditionally is as to the semantics nearer to the “indexical expression” in linguistics. In the English language, particularly demonstrative pronouns carry out this deictic function. Deixis is a means, uniting semantics with pragmatics, because, language expressions are set up by means of pragmatic substitutions. Service to determine the roles of participants of the communication mainly falling on the pronouns is the meaning or function of language unit, expressed as a lexical and grammatical means.
Deictic expressions raise important issues for semantic theory. In (formal) semantics, deictic expressions are defined as linguistic signs with “direct reference”. In contrast to content words, deictic expressions do not evoke a concept of some entity but establish a direct referential link between world and language. Since the interpretation of deixis is immediately determined by aspects of the speech situation, deictic expressions require a particular treatment in semantic theory.
Deixis serves to actualize the denotive contents of the expression, components and situation of the text. In the modern investigations deixis is studied parallel with semantics and pragmatics. In the modern linguistics, by this term mainly are mentioned demonstrative and personal pronouns, some adverbs grammatical tenses, including other lexical units and grammatical markers being considered fitful to the place in which the utterance sounds. In modern linguistics we belong to the temporal deictic word as the words, characterizing the relative existence, time aspect of movement or test, an instant used in comparison with another exact instant characterizing a phenomenon perceived by the senses of the participant of the communication.
The category of pronouns, as the system of deictic words, causes great interest. It is not occasional that grammatical degree attracted the attention of soviet investigators and the investigators including other countries as well. In the English language the authors of grammatical dialectical and other works have not forgotten this difficult and interesting part of linguistics. Nevertheless the origin of different degrees of pronouns, their formation and development have not been determined up to now.
But our interest mostly attracted the definite article, its functions in modern English, its place in semantics and the function as a deictic word especially. The definite article expresses the identification or individualization of the referent of the noun. The object that the noun denote is taken as concrete and individual, or definite. The definite article has a generic uses for a class of entities rather than a specific member of a class, and non-generic uses, the latter being wider and more frequent. After unknown entities have been introduce, they can be treated as «known» and named by the in later references.
The subject of this study is: deixis, the category of deixis and types of deictic words and expressions. There is perhaps no other linguistic phenomenon that is so fundamentally rooted in our bodily experience than deixis.
The object of the study is: the definite article in English and as a deictic word especially.
The aim of this study is to analyze the form, meaning, and use of deictic expressions from a psycholinguistic and cross-linguistic point of view, especially the definite article and give the asymmetries between the definite article and demonstratives (this, that).
In order to fulfill the aim of this study the following tasks occur:
 To give definition to the deixis;
 To study the categories of deixis;
 To analyze the types of the deictic words and expressions;
 To give definition to the definite article;
 To examine the functions it carries in modern English;
 To study the determination of the deixis;
 To give the asymmetries between the definite article and demonstratives (this, that).
The structure of this work is organized in two main chapters. Starting with the introduction, the first chapter gives definition to the deixis, studies its place in pragmatics and semantics, gives the categories of diexis. The second chapter gives the types of deictic expressions and studies them one by one, especially the definite article and give the asymmetries between the definite article and demonstratives (this, that). Ending with the conclusion of the study we give the list of references used in the work