Discourse markers in Spanish
Project description
Discourse markers belong to a category of linguistic devices which seem to play an important role in expressing and interpreting discourse in an adequate way. Despite their key-role in discourse, they are not easy to define. Discourse markers do not have an informational content, but contribute to it by establishing links. So, they function as cohesive devices with a procedural role. They can be used as connective devices with an argumentative, a reformulating or an organizing function, they can operate as discourse modalizers, they can focalize an element in a discourse or they can serve to enhance or maintain contact and control in communication. Moreover, discourse markers often have more than one function. This research topic seeks to explore the multifunctional nature of those markers in oral and/or written discourse, in language learners’ discourse and/or native speakers’ discourse, etc. Different approaches (theoretical, corpus-based, experimental, cross-linguistic) can be brought in to explain how discourse markers are used.
An Vande Casteele belongs to the research group “Centre for Linguistics”, a leading centre for research on multilingualism and second language teaching. She welcomes researchers interested in strengthening their knowledge with an in depth analysis of the use of discourse markers in Spanish to discuss ideas for the submission of a research proposal.
About the research Group
Centre for Linguistics (CLIN)
CLIN is part of the Linguistics and Literary Studies department (LIST) within the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy. The main objective of CLIN is to promote research in theoretical and applied linguistics and the application of this research in the wider society. Research at CLIN addresses a broad spectrum of issues related to the structure, use, learning and teaching, impairment, historical development, and the social and political contexts of languages. Recent work includes studies on morphology, syntax, semantics and pragmatics, dialectology, sociolinguistics, sociohistorical linguistics, bilingualism and bilingual education, aphasia, childhood speech and language disorders, second language acquisition, and methodology and practice in language teaching. Applications of research at CLIN include consultancy for private and public organisations in the areas of language and education policy, curriculum design, language teaching material development, language assessment, speech pathology, and natural language processing. Furthermore, the research centre hosts the Werkgroep Over Taal (WOT), a platform for the collaborative interchange of knowledge via presentations and workshops by international (guest-)speakers covering a wide variety of linguistic topics.