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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities

Revisiting Pragmatics Abilities In Autism Spectrum Disorders, Jessica De Villiers, Brooke Myers, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2013

Revisiting Pragmatics Abilities In Autism Spectrum Disorders, Jessica De Villiers, Brooke Myers, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

In a 2007 paper, we argued that speakers with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) exhibit pragmatic abilities which are surprising given the usual understanding of communication in that group. That is, it is commonly reported that people diagnosed with an ASD have trouble with metaphor, irony, conversational implicature and other non-literal language. This is not a matter of trouble with knowledge and application of rules of grammar. The difficulties lie, rather, in successful communicative interaction. Though we did find pragmatic errors within literal talk, the transcribed conversations we studied showed many, many successes. A second paper reinforced our finding of a …


Pragmatic Abilities In Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Follow-Up Study, Jessica Devilliers, Brooke Myers, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2012

Pragmatic Abilities In Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Follow-Up Study, Jessica Devilliers, Brooke Myers, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

Our guiding question, here and in two prior papers, is: Are some pragmatic tasks more difficult than others for people diagnosed with ASDs? For instance, it has been tentatively suggested by Happé (1995) that understanding irony is more difficult for ASD speakers than understanding metaphor is. Or again, our 2007 paper urged, on the basis of corpus examples, that while speakers with ASDs show difficulties with “figurative language” generally – metaphor, irony, conversational implicature (Dennis et al. 2001; Gold et al. 2010; Happé 1995; MacKay & Shaw, 2004) – they are relatively proficient with pragmatic determinants of literal speech act …


Revenge, Robert J. Stainton Mar 2006

Revenge, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

This paper discusses, in a preliminary manner, what revengeis. (It does not address the rationality or moral standing of revenge.) In particular, it proposes four elements of revenge —an agent, a recipient, a harm intended by the former, and a harm done by the latter which provokes the revenge. Based on these four elements, it highlights both agent-internal conditions forgetting revenge, and agent external ones. Along the way, the paper contrasts revenge with related phenomena like merely getting even, and retribution.


On Restricting The Evidence Base For Linguistics, C. Iten, Robert J. Stainton, C. Wearing Dec 2005

On Restricting The Evidence Base For Linguistics, C. Iten, Robert J. Stainton, C. Wearing

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Quotation: Compositionality And Innocence Without Demonstration, Andrew Botterell, Robert J. Stainton Jul 2005

Quotation: Compositionality And Innocence Without Demonstration, Andrew Botterell, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

We discuss two kinds of quotation, namely indirect quotation (e.g., 'Anita said that Mexico is beautiful') and pure quotation (e.g., 'Mexico' has six letters). With respect to each, we have both a negative and a positive plaint. The negative plaint is that the strict Davidsonian (1968, 1979a) treatment of indirect and pure quotation cannot be correct. The positive plaint is an alternative account of how quotation of these two sorts works.


The Context Principle, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2004

The Context Principle, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Introduction To Ellipsis And Non-Sentential Speech, Ray Elugardo, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2004

Introduction To Ellipsis And Non-Sentential Speech, Ray Elugardo, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Null Complements: Licensed By Syntax Or By Semantics-Pragmatics?, Corinne Iten, M.-O. Junker, Aryn Pyke, Robert J. Stainton, Catherine Wearking Dec 2004

Null Complements: Licensed By Syntax Or By Semantics-Pragmatics?, Corinne Iten, M.-O. Junker, Aryn Pyke, Robert J. Stainton, Catherine Wearking

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


In Defense Of Non-Sentential Assertion, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2004

In Defense Of Non-Sentential Assertion, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

A defense of non-sentential assertion against Jason Stanley and Peter Ludlow


The Pragmatics Of Non-Sentences, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2003

The Pragmatics Of Non-Sentences, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Varieties Of Empiricism, David Matheson, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2001

Varieties Of Empiricism, David Matheson, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


"Obviously Propositions Are Nothing": Russell And The Logical Form Of Belief Reports, Lenny Clapp, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2001

"Obviously Propositions Are Nothing": Russell And The Logical Form Of Belief Reports, Lenny Clapp, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Communicative Events As Evidence In Linguistics, Robert J. Stainton Dec 2000

Communicative Events As Evidence In Linguistics, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Interrogatives And Sets Of Answers, Robert J. Stainton Mar 1999

Interrogatives And Sets Of Answers, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Robust Belief States And The Right/Wrong Dichotomy, Robert J. Stainton Dec 1998

Robust Belief States And The Right/Wrong Dichotomy, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Utterance Meaning And Syntactic Ellipsis, Robert J. Stainton Dec 1996

Utterance Meaning And Syntactic Ellipsis, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Indeterminacy, Opacity And The Identity Theory, Robert J. Stainton Jul 1995

Indeterminacy, Opacity And The Identity Theory, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.


Using Non-Sentences: An Application Of Relevance Theory, Robert J. Stainton Dec 1993

Using Non-Sentences: An Application Of Relevance Theory, Robert J. Stainton

Robert J. Stainton

No abstract provided.