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1、 The Pragmatic Functions of the Chinese Modal Auxiliaries - In reference to Neng Verb Group Wen Xiong University of Rhode Island, USA 提要 汉语助动词是外国学生学习汉语的难点之 一。无论是从汉语本体的角度，还是从汉语 作为第二语言学习的角度，对汉语助动词的 语用功能的考察，前人的研究基本是空白。 类似的研究对深化对汉语的研究，进一步提 高对外汉语教学的有效性是不可或缺的, 因为 语言的语用功能直接体现为如何用语言完成 表达和交际。本文从对外汉语教和学的角 度，选
2、取助动词中最常用的“能”类助动 词，对其中的四个助动词（能，可以，会， 可能）的语用功能进行了详细列举和分析， 研究的成果揭示了语言中语法形式，语义和 语言功能的密切关系。 1. Introduction The acquisition of Chinese modal auxiliary verbs (such as 能， 可以，会，应该.) is highly complex for learners of Chinese (Ji, 1992; Tao, 1991; Xiong; 1996; Chen, 2002), and the learners continue to use the
3、m inaccurately, even at advanced level. This raises several Chinese Studies Review, no. 1, vol. 3, May 2008 30questions: Why is there a lack of mastery of the Chinese modal auxiliary verbs by learners? Where do their problems come from? Do we really understand the aspects of learning process? Is ins
4、truction helpful and effective? In the studies of teaching English modal auxiliary verbs, Holmes (1988) noted that most of textbooks do not adequately cover modals, if they cover them at all. Krkkinen (1992) pointed out that a lack of research into the modals pragmatic functions leads to the neglect
5、 of explicit teaching of the modal verb forms. This paper sheds light on the teaching of Chinese modal auxiliary verbs as a second/ foreign language by exploring their specific pragmatic functions. 2. Literature Review The studies of mood or modality have been related to each other for centuries and
6、 can be traced back to debates in the literature of logical and philosophical studies. From the perspective of language, mood (modal, -ity) is defined by Crystal (2003, p. 299) as follows: Mood (“modality”, or “mode”) refers to a set of SYNTACTIC AND SEMANTIC CONTRASTS signaled by alternative PARADI
7、GMS of the verb, e.g. INDICATIVE (the UNMARKED form), SUBJUNCTIVE, IMPERATIVE. Semantically, a wide range of meanings is involved, especially attitudes on the part of the speaker towards the factual content of the utterance, e.g. uncertainty, definiteness, vagueness, possibility. Chinese Studies Rev
8、iew, no. 1, vol. 3, May 2008 31Syntactically, these contrasts may be signaled by alternative INFLECTIONAL forms of a verb, or by using AUXILIARIES. From this definition, it can be interpreted that mood or modality is a common category in language, and is a combination of syntactic elements (alternat
9、ive PARADIGMS of the verb), semantic elements (a wide range of meanings) and pragmatic elements (including attitudes on the part of the speaker towards the factual content of the utterance). Extending this argument, therefore, meanings such as permission, obligation, volition, possibility, necessity
10、 and prediction and so on can be expressed in different languages by alternative PARADIGMS of the verb. While it may not be possible to easily claim universality for these aforementioned meanings, it is highly likely that substantial parts of these meanings will be shared between languages (and cult
11、ures). One consequence of this is that the language users will need to understand how these meaning are expressed and the language learners will need to discover whether, and if so, how these meanings are realized differently in a new language. Research on L1 development (Halliday, 1975; Wells, 1979
12、, 1985; Perkins, 1983; Richards, 1990; Papafragou, 2000) claims that the acquisition of the modal auxiliary is particularly interesting because it is important in a childs linguistic development in relation to the acquisition stage, rate, variation and communicative strategies. Richards (1990, p. 5)
13、 , for example, points out that “Despite the possibility of alternative strategies to Chinese Studies Review, no. 1, vol. 3, May 2008 32express auxiliary meaning, however, an increasing mastery of the syntax, semantics and pragmatics of auxiliary usage is an inextricable part of language development
14、 from an early stage.” Although the importance of the pragmatic functions has been long recognized because it is so closely related to the language use and speech acts, the pragmatic studies of modal auxiliaries are limited. The relevant research is on childrens use of specific forms or speech acts,
15、 such as indirect requests (Menyuk, 1969; Perkins, 1983; Ervin-Tripp Basham Ellis, 1992; Hill, 1997; Salsbury but hui is used more frequently in affirmative sentences (45%) rather than in interrogative sentences (20.2%). Guos (2005) 1, 8500, 000-word corpus based study provided more statistics about
16、 the different frequencies of using different modals and different meanings of a modal. For example, he found that neng was used in 295 declarative sentences, 83% of its usage was to express “ability” and 17% to express “root possibility”. Moreover, the constraints from the syntactic frames and pragmatic requirements also influence the meaning distribution of the modal auxiliary verbs. Table 2.1 (Guo, 20
