8.4 Presupposition projection and accommodation

Presupposition projection and accommodation are key concepts in understanding how meaning is conveyed in language. They explain how certain information survives in complex sentences and how listeners adapt to new information presented as known.

These concepts are crucial for effective communication. They show how speakers can efficiently share information by building on assumed knowledge, and how listeners interpret and adjust to new information introduced as if it were already established.

Presupposition Projection and Accommodation

Presupposition projection in sentences

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• Phenomenon where presuppositions of a sentence's components are inherited by the complex sentence as a whole
  • Allows presuppositions to "survive" embedding under various operators (negation, conditionals, modals)
• Maintains truth of presuppositions even when overall sentence meaning is altered by operators
• Ensures presupposed information remains part of the sentence's meaning regardless of main assertion's truth value
• Examples:
  • "John didn't stop smoking" presupposes John used to smoke, even though main assertion is negated
  • "If Mary's cat is hungry, she will feed it" presupposes Mary has a cat, regardless of the conditional's truth

Concept of presupposition accommodation

• Process where listeners adjust understanding of context to accept speaker's presuppositions as true, even if not previously aware of information
  • Occurs when speaker introduces new information as if already known or accepted by listener
• Allows introduction of new information without explicitly stating it
• Facilitates conversation flow by reducing need for extensive background information
• Enables speakers to make assumptions about shared knowledge and build upon it
• Examples:
  • "I'm sorry I'm late. I had to take my dog to the vet" presupposes speaker has a dog, even if listener was unaware
  • "Have you read the email I sent you?" presupposes speaker sent an email to the listener

Presuppositions in linguistic environments

• Negation
  • Presuppositions typically survive negation, remaining true even when main assertion is negated
  • "John hasn't stopped smoking" presupposes John used to smoke
• Conditionals
  • Presuppositions of consequent clause project out of conditional, while presuppositions of antecedent clause do not necessarily project
  • "If John has a sister, then his sister is a doctor" presupposes John has a sister
• Questions
  • Presuppositions of a question typically project, assumed to be true regardless of answer
  • "When did you quit your job?" presupposes the person had a job and quit
• Modals
  • Presuppositions usually project through modal operators (may, might, must)
  • "Mary must have stopped playing piano" presupposes Mary used to play piano

Application of presupposition principles

• Real-world examples:
  1. "I can't believe I forgot my wallet at the restaurant"
     • Presupposes speaker was at a restaurant and had their wallet there
     • Listener accommodates presupposition to make sense of statement
  2. "Did you enjoy the concert last night?"
     • Presupposes there was a concert last night and the listener attended
     • If presuppositions are not true, listener may need to challenge or correct before answering
• Importance in communication:
  • Allows for efficient information sharing by leveraging shared knowledge
  • Helps maintain coherence and relevance in discourse
  • Can be used strategically to introduce new information or guide conversation
• Potential challenges:
  • Mismatched presuppositions between speaker and listener can lead to misunderstandings
  • Accommodation may not always occur, requiring explicit clarification or correction
  • Presuppositions can be used manipulatively to imply information that is not true or agreed upon