Focuses on the proper place of interlanguage pragmatics in the realm of second-language acquisition (SLA). This introductory essay describes the thematic issue of the ensuing articles as an endeavor to move interlanguage pragmatics more closely toward the center of SLA. The research suggests that many aspects of pragmatic competence can be…

Reports on the results of four experiments that show that people can recognize ironic meanings that were not intended, and that processing unintended irony can be done easily precisely because speakers' utterances, unbeknownst to them, create ironic situations. Discusses implications for psycholinguistic theories of irony comprehension and for…

Identifies the characteristic principles of intertextuality in school mathematics. Drawing on a larger study, this article examines how language is used to construct the shared meanings of a mathematical theme. An analysis is made of spoken and written texts to determine their contribution to the development of a thematic formation for the topic…

Focuses on the discourse skills used by some white, middle-class, advantaged preschool girls to manage their disagreements. The article shows how their management of opposition is a jointly constructed achievement requiring the coordination of high levels of sociolinguistic skill to arrive at cooperative as well as self-serving, competitive or…

Reevaluates the role of communication within the communicative approach to second-language learning. The article explores the consequences of using the notion of the speech act in the classroom, dissociating it from other speech acts, context, culture, and grammar. The article concludes that this approach may caricature authentic conversation. (48…

Examines the rhetoric used in "Chuang Tzu" to disclose the sage's theory of rhetoric. Shows that revealing the mind of the sage is the main task of "Chuang Tzu." Discusses why neither direct description nor firsthand encounters with sages are well suited to disclosing the sage's mind. Examines how "Chuang Tzu" uses invented narratives to achieve…

Meditates on the purported paratactic or topic-associating narrative style of the marginalized other by looking closely at the first-grade sharing time story of a particular child. Looks at race, gender, class, and age and the dichotomous thinking that gives potency to these categories. (TB)

Analyzes student discourse in 4 grade-12 lab groups working on microcomputer-based laboratories. Analysis reveals the role the computer plays in the group context and the ways that this context is shaped by the computer. Contains 22 references. (Author/JRH)

Finds strong support for the appraisal-emotion link, although the effect of message form on appraisals was weaker and more complex than expected. Implies that only a subset of the appraisals are relevant to influence attempts in close relationships, and finds that dominance and explicitness showed unique and nonparallel effects on appraisals. (SR)

Finds that coworker conversations regarding differential treatment serve two primary functions: they create perceptions of differential treatment, and they reinforce preexisting perceptions of differential treatment. Shows that members tend to emphasize the subordinate's role in the incident over the supervisor's and rely heavily on equity…

Examines stylistic conventions across disciplines in the language of doctoral theses, arguing that these conventions reflect sophisticated learning of key disciplinary norms governing the conception, production, and reporting of knowledge in particular fields. Attention is directed to the structure of argument and techniques for coherence,…

Examined parent-child play in 30 4-year-old children with early corrective heart surgery (ECHS) and 30 typically-developing children. Children were compared on basic language measures and proportions of symbolic and nonsymbolic talk. Children with ECHS focused on concrete "here and now" talk and produced less symbolic talk; only one third of the…

Examines male and female students' participation in class discussions (measured in word counts). Finds that students participated more frequently in face-to-face discussions after they participated in a Daedalus Interchange sessions, but socially constructed variables such as gender lead some students to participate less frequently in traditional…

Looks at how a class newsgroup impacted on class participation in a graduate seminar that included students who initially appeared at a possible disadvantage--linguistically, educationally, and experientially. Discusses these culturally diverse students' contributions to the asynchronous class discussion. Raises concerns about limitations of the…

Analyzes writing features conceptually linked to collectivist or individualist orientations among students from Taiwan and the United States. Notes that theses features were indirectness, personal disclosure, use of proverbs and other canonical expressions, collective self, and assertiveness. Makes comparisons across languages and nationalities…