Barbara A. Fox

Responses to Wh-Questions in English Conversation

We explore the grammatical and interactional characteristics of various response-types to wh-questions in American English conversation. Our data reveal that there are two broad types of responses to type-specifying wh-questions, phrasal and clausal. We argue that each of these types of responses exhibits unique interactional properties, such that while phrasal responses to wh-questions do simple answering, clausal responses occur when there is trouble with the question or sequence. We suggest that the design of wh-questions permits a grammatically symbiotic or grammatically resonant response, and that such symbiotic phrasal responses, specifically fitted to the lexicogrammar of wh-questions, are the optimal no-trouble response for furthering the project initiated by the question. We take our study to provide further confirmation of the view of grammar that Schegloff has persuasively argued for (1996b, inter alia), namely the value, indeed the necessity, of considering grammar in terms of its real-time sequential habitat, the everyday practices through which social interaction is managed and accomplished.

Principles shaping grammatical practices: an exploration

This article explores the principles of interaction that shape grammatical practices of conversational speech cross-linguistically. Seven such principles are explored, and the grammatical practices they give rise to are illustrated. The role of these principles in shaping non-linguistic behavior is also touched on.This article explores the principles of interaction that shape grammatical practices of conversational speech cross-linguistically. Seven such principles are explored, and the grammatical practices they give rise to are illustrated. The role of these principles in shaping non-linguistic behavior is also touched on.

Contextualization, indexicality, and the distributed nature of grammar

Abstract The goal of this paper is to explore the ramifications of a non-traditional view of cognition and social interaction for the study of grammatical structure. The view of cognition and social interaction that I will be using as a starting point for this exploration was stimulated by work in ethnomethodology, post-structuralism, activity theory, and ordinary language philosophy. I want to attempt the following goals: (1) to suggest that the notions of structure some of us have been operating with hide an enormous range of diversity in the use of forms and in how these forms are understood; (2) to suggest that a view of grammar that takes seriously the notion of indexicality as a pervasive design feature of talk can help us find some new ways of thinking about grammar; and (3) to sketch out what such a view of grammar might look like. The goal of this study, then, is to explore the possibilities of organization for grammar, if we take seriously the basic characteristics of indexicality and contextualization. Obviously, in the course of this, we will have occasion to examine changes in our views of cognition and mental representation, as well as of grammatical structure.

Interactional reconstruction in real-time language processing

This study documents and characterizes a phenomenon in naturally-occurring conversation which I have termed interactional reconstruction. Interactional reconstruction involves retroactive reinterpretation of an earlier utterance (or set of utterances) on the basis of a more recent utterance (or set of utterances). This work is meant to serve two functions: first, to enrich our theories of human communication; and second, to explore directions and implications for theories of meaning and discourse modeling within cognitive science.

It's like mmm: Enactments with it's like

This article explores the distribution and use of a relatively new grammatical format in English, it’s like + enactment. We propose that it’s like utterances are used to enact thoughts, feelings and attitudes which are internal and affect-laden assessments of a prior utterance or event, produced as assessments that anyone in the same situation might have had. As such they tend to occur within stories, typically during the closing of a story. The enactments are often ‘response cries’ (Goffman, 1978) such as oh, mm, wow, and man. Because of the highly indexical nature of this grammatical format, it represents a fascinating site for participants to work out a ‘world known in common’ (Goodwin, personal communication).

Morpho-syntactic markedness and discourse structure☆

Abstract This study explores an interesting interaction between discourse structure and morphosyntactic markedness. In particular, it is shown that the marked member of some morphosyntactic oppositions (those involving participant tracking) tends to be associated with the beginning of discourse units. The principle is supported with data on word-order inversion in Tagalog and with data on anaphora in English. As part of this exploration, it is suggested that viewing discourse as composed of hierarchically arranged functional units, rather than as a string of clauses, strengthens our hypotheses concerning the relationships between discourse and grammar.

On the notion of pre-request

In early work within Conversation Analysis, utterances within a request sequence which inquire regarding some of the preconditions of granting the request (such as having the item or having the ability to perform the action) are analyzed as pre-requests. Levinson, in an extended discussion of the organization of pre-requests and request sequences, treats utterances such as ‘do you have X?’, ‘can I have X?’ or ‘can you X for me?’ as inquiring about preconditions that could prevent the recipient from granting the request. By checking on preconditions, the requester works to avoid producing a request which will be declined, which is a dispreferred action. In other words, pre-requests, like other pre-sequences, function to project that another action will be produced if a favorable response is given; if not, that projected action may not be produced. In this view, then, they work to maintain the preference organization. This study uses requesting in service encounters to re-examine the evidence for an analysis of such utterances as pre-requests and finds that alternative analyses are more suited in these requesting activities.

The Alignment of Manual and Verbal Displays in Requests for the Repair of an Object

In this study we explore request sequences at an American shoe repair shop. We investigate the methods through which customers at the shop present objects for repair or alteration, focusing on the fine interplay between their verbal requests and their manual manipulation of these objects. Our analysis shows that customers coming to the shoe repair shop enact an epistemic stance toward the object they have brought in for repair. We argue that the verbal utterances and manual manipulations are fitted to one another with regard to the epistemic stance individual customers display: Customers whose requests are formulated, for instance, as problem descriptions or as inquiries into the repairability of an object manipulate the object only very minimally, if at all; whereas customers whose requests are formulated as solution specifications manipulate the object in ways that also evidence the problem and/or its solution. The data are in American English.

Rethinking format: An examination of requests

This study explores the formulation of requests in an American English-speaking shoe repair shop. Taking prior work on request formats as our starting point, we explore the two primary syntactic moods (declarative and interrogative) in our collection and two of the commonly noted subtypes of these moods, need/want -declaratives and can- interrogatives. While our findings in very general terms match those of previous studies, we also find significant grammatical variation within each of these formats, and note interactional uses for each variation. Our examination yields insight into facets of requesting that were previously undescribed. We offer an Emergent Grammar perspective on the complexity of lexicosyntax in the social action of requesting. (Requests, formats, Emergent Grammar, Conversation Analysis, American English, service encounters) *

Anaphora in Popular Stories: Implications for Narrative Theory

Recent work in a variety of fields, including literary criticism, linguistics, cognitive psychology, and computer science, has been rife with theories of narrative, in particular narrative structure. The goal of this article is to evaluate, by exploring data on anaphora in narratives, two specific models of narrative structure, Story Grammar and Conceptual Dependency, whose underlying assumptions are shared by a wide range of theorists and to comment in general on re-visioning narrative theory.