Embedded implicatures Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures?!? (with Nausicaa Pouscoulous) In: Semantics and pragmatics (2009). Quantity implicatures. Cambridge University Press (2010). Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 1
Embedded implicatures Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures?!? (with Nausicaa Pouscoulous) In: Semantics and pragmatics (2009). Quantity implicatures. Cambridge University Press (2010). Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 2
The problem (1) Bob believes that Anna ate some of the cookies. Gricean pragmatics only predicts the following inference: Bel Speaker ¬ Bel Bob [Anna ate all the cookies] But, on some occasions at least, we would like to have: Bel Speaker Bel Bob ¬ [Anna ate all the cookies] Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 3
The problem (1) Bob believes that Anna ate some of the cookies. Gricean pragmatics only predicts the following inference: Bel Speaker ¬ Bel Bob [Anna ate all the cookies] But, on some occasions at least, we would like to have: Bel Speaker Bel Bob ¬ [Anna ate all the cookies] Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 4
Two approaches to embedded implicatures Gricean: Embedded implicatures are the exception. Conventionalist: Embedded implicatures “occur systematically and freely.” (Chierchia, Fox, and Spector) Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 5
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 6
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 7
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 8
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 9
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 10
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 11
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 12
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 13
The Gricean approach Embedded implicatures don’t exist. But: under special circumstances, we may observe inferences that look like embedded implicatures. Example (van Rooij and Schulz, Russell): (1) George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. Implicature: Bel S ¬ Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Assumption: Bel S Bel G [all of G’s advisors are crooks] ∨ Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Ergo: Bel S Bel G ¬ [all of G’s advisors are crooks] Note that this analysis doesn’t generalise to other forms of ☞ embedding. Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 14
The conventionalist approach Silent “only”: So [ ϕ ] is true iff ϕ is true and ∀ ψ ∈ Alt( ϕ ): if ψ is stronger than ϕ , then ψ is false. So is inserted in the parse tree ad libitum. The strongest reading is preferred. Examples: (1) a. George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. b. So [George believes that some of his advisors are crooks] c. George believes that So [some of his advisors are crooks] (2) a. You can have an apple or a pear. b. SoSo [you can have an apple or have a pear] c. SoSo [you can So [have an apple] or So [have a pear]] Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 15
The conventionalist approach Silent “only”: So [ ϕ ] is true iff ϕ is true and ∀ ψ ∈ Alt( ϕ ): if ψ is stronger than ϕ , then ψ is false. So is inserted in the parse tree ad libitum. The strongest reading is preferred. Examples: (1) a. George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. b. So [George believes that some of his advisors are crooks] c. George believes that So [some of his advisors are crooks] (2) a. You can have an apple or a pear. b. SoSo [you can have an apple or have a pear] c. SoSo [you can So [have an apple] or So [have a pear]] Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 16
The conventionalist approach Silent “only”: So [ ϕ ] is true iff ϕ is true and ∀ ψ ∈ Alt( ϕ ): if ψ is stronger than ϕ , then ψ is false. So is inserted in the parse tree ad libitum. The strongest reading is preferred. Examples: (1) a. George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. b. So [George believes that some of his advisors are crooks] c. George believes that So [some of his advisors are crooks] (2) a. You can have an apple or a pear. b. SoSo [you can have an apple or have a pear] c. SoSo [you can So [have an apple] or So [have a pear]] Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 17
The conventionalist approach Silent “only”: So [ ϕ ] is true iff ϕ is true and ∀ ψ ∈ Alt( ϕ ): if ψ is stronger than ϕ , then ψ is false. So is inserted in the parse tree ad libitum. The strongest reading is preferred. Examples: (1) a. George believes that some of his advisors are crooks. b. So [George believes that some of his advisors are crooks] c. George believes that So [some of his advisors are crooks] (2) a. You can have an apple or a pear. b. SoSo [you can have an apple or have a pear] c. SoSo [you can So [have an apple] or So [have a pear]] Bart Geurts Embedded implicatures 18
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