PRAGMATIC TEXTS

- Analysis of the source text -

Claudia Stoian
Politehnica University of Timisoara, Romania
claudia.stoian@upt.ro
 Content
• Definition of pragmatic texts
• Characteristics of pragmatic texts
 Area of use, communicative purpose, content
 Genre
 Textual organization
 Style
 Language
• Application
• Translating pragmatic texts
 Definition of pragmatic texts
• Instruments of communication serving practical and immediate
communicative purposes in social and professional settings
• Closely reflect the context in which they are produced:
 author’s purpose with the text
 target audience expectations
 inner logic of the subject-matter
 norms and conventions of communication and writing functioning in the
speech/discourse community
Examples of pragmatic texts (1)
Examples of pragmatic texts (2)
 Examples of pragmatic texts (3)
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Examples of pragmatic texts (4)
Xerox 700 Digital Color Press
Emptying the Staple Waste Container
The Staple Waste Container should be emptied on a daily basis to ensure optimum operating efficiency of the
digital press.
1. Make sure that the machine has stopped copying and printing, then open the Right Cover on the finisher.
2. Locate the Staple Waste Container (R5) in the finisher.
3. Grip the container and move the lever to the right; the Unlock position.
4. Remove the container from the finisher.
5. Remove the new container from the packaging. Dispose of the full container in the new container packaging.
6. Insert the new container into the finisher.
7. Move the lever to the left; the lock position.
8. Close the Right Cover of the finisher.
 Examples of pragmatic texts (5)

This discourtesy went beyond all limits. Alice rose upset from the chair and
left; the hamster immediately fell asleep and none of the other two seemed
to mind her leaving, although she turned her head around several times,
with the hope that they will call her back. As she moved away, Alice saw
how the two were trying to poke the hamster into the teapot.
 Characteristics of pragmatic texts
• Domain/Areas of use
• Communicative purposes
• Content
• Communicative event
• Textual organization
• Style
• Language
 Domain/Areas of use
• business and finance • legal matters
• civil service and political • mass-media
organizations • education
• science and technology • entertainment
• politics • tourist industry
• food
 Domain?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Communicative purpose
• Informative: informs about facts
• Persuasive: aims to convince
• Phatic: intends to establish or maintain good professional or personal
relationships
 Communicative purpose?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Content
• Objective facts
• Feelings
• Attitudes
 Content?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Content?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Communicative event
• Report
• Letter
• News article
• Instruction sheet
• Memo
• Recipe
• Tourist leaflet, etc.
 Communicative event?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Textual organization
• Specific norms and conventions determined by the nature of the message
and the readers’ expectations
• Conventionalized cognitive structure (of information)/ predominant
rhetorical mode is determined by the communicative purpose:
 Informative purpose: Descriptive/instructive mode
 Persuasive purpose: Argumentative mode
 Phatic purpose: Argumentative mode
 Textual organization?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Stylistic features (1)
Clarity Simplicity
• free from obscurity and easy to • easy to understand, clear and
understand: straightforward
 unambiguous use of words
 use of active voice
 word order, etc.
 Stylistic features (2)
Precision Conciseness
• exact / to the point • minimal number of words needed to
convey the information without
sacrificing clarity.
• opposed to density: a dense text is
difficult to follow => insufficient detail,
underdevelopped ideas, missing links, etc.
• opposed to wordiness: too many words
to say what you have to say.
 Stylistic features (3)
Officiality Politeness
• issued by an institution or other • having or showing good manners
entities or respect for other people
 Stylistic features (4)
Distance Impersonality
• Length between interlocutors • Not showing or involving
personal feelings
 Stylistic features?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Linguistic characteristics (1)
• Lexical
 terms,
 set expressions, etc.
 Linguistic (lexical) features?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Linguistic (lexical) features?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Linguistic characteristics (2)
• Morphological:
 Verb forms: voice, tense
 Nouns
 Adjectives
 Adverbs
 Linguistic (morphological) features?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Linguistic (morphological) features?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Linguistic characteristics
• Syntactic:
 Impersonal constructions,
 Syntactic patterns as formulas
 Length of clauses
 Word order
 Linguistic (syntactic) features?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Linguistic (syntactic) features?
Pancetta and parmesan puffs
• Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Put a small frying pan on a medium heat for the pancetta.
• Then, put the butter and milk in a medium pan over a low heat and leave the butter
to melt.
• Meanwhile, tip the pancetta into the frying pan with a drizzle of oil and cook for
about four minutes, tossing every so often.
• Once the butter has melted into the milk, whack up the heat and bring to the boil.
 Application – table
FACTORS CHARACTERISTICS
1. Cultural-institutional Domain/Areas of use:
context
Communicative purposes:

Content:

2. Genres Communicative event:

3. Genre-texts Textual organization:

Stylistic features:

Linguistic features:
• lexical:
• morphological:
• syntactic:
 Application - text
We will pick you up in the morning for a transfer to Granada so that you will
visit the mighty Alhambra Palaces. You will discover a maze of magnificent
halls and intimate courtyards decorated by rows of elegant arches, bubbling
fountains and splendidly carved decorations. You will see the Palace of
Charles the 5th, an outstanding example of Spanish Renaissance architecture,
and the Alcazaba fortress with its Torre de la Vela tower offering spectacular
views of Granada. The Alhambra can be visited by paying a fee. The entry is
18 Euros per person (extra) and bookings in advance is a MUST, as there will
not be tickets available on the day!
 Translating pragmatic texts
• These types of texts cannot be translated adequately and appropriately if
the translator does not consider the situation in which the texts are
produced and for which they are translated
• They belong to professional genres, conveying information in textual
forms expected by the audience at whom they are aimed at
• Language is always used practically and not aesthetically
Thank you for your attention!