(De)coding Modality : The Case of Must, May, Måste and Kan
type: CreativeWork
description: This study investigates the mechanisms of (de)coding modality, focusing on the interpretation of utterances containing the modals must, may, måste, and kan. The main research question posed in this study is what enables the interlocutors to interpret modal expressions so that communicative goals are achieved. To answer this general question, Coates's (1983) study on modal contexts is initially replicated on data extracted from the English-Swedish Parallel Corpus. The data sample used in this investigation is considerably larger than that of Coates, and allows for contrastive observations. Coates's findings were confirmed to a large extent, and additional features were found to be associated with modal interpretations. It was also established that in most examples the features combine. Finally, in a number of indeterminate examples the indeterminacy was shown to be due to inconclusive or conflicting arrangements of the relevant features in these utterances. To explicate the systematic association of the said features with modal interpretations, the notion of Controllability underlying these features was introduced. In this study, Controllability is concerned with the ability of an agent to control the event described in the proposition (of a modal utterance). Controllability is central to the interpretation of modal utterances: utterances in which propositions are encoded so as to indicate lack of agent control are interpreted epistemically, whereas utterances where the relevant features indicate that the intended agent is in control of the situation are deontic. Type of subject, the distinction between states and events, time reference for modality and the proposition, explicit and implicit conditions, and situation type all facilitate the notion of Controllability in English and Swedish. A number of additional features, such as the presence of epistemic adverbials or particles, utterance type, and negation, were also discussed as being of importance for the interpr…
abstract: This study investigates the mechanisms of (de)coding modality, focusing on the interpretation of utterances containing the modals must, may, måste, and kan. The main research question posed in this study is what enables the interlocutors to interpret modal expressions so that communicative goals are achieved. To answer this general question, Coates's (1983) study on modal contexts is initially replicated on data extracted from the English-Swedish Parallel Corpus. The data sample used in this investigation is considerably larger than that of Coates, and allows for contrastive observations. Coates's findings were confirmed to a large extent, and additional features were found to be associated with modal interpretations. It was also established that in most examples the features combine. Finally, in a number of indeterminate examples the indeterminacy was shown to be due to inconclusive or conflicting arrangements of the relevant features in these utterances. To explicate the systematic association of the said features with modal interpretations, the notion of Controllability underlying these features was introduced. In this study, Controllability is concerned with the ability of an agent to control the event described in the proposition (of a modal utterance). Controllability is central to the interpretation of modal utterances: utterances in which propositions are encoded so as to indicate lack of agent control are interpreted epistemically, whereas utterances where the relevant features indicate that the intended agent is in control of the situation are deontic. Type of subject, the distinction between states and events, time reference for modality and the proposition, explicit and implicit conditions, and situation type all facilitate the notion of Controllability in English and Swedish. A number of additional features, such as the presence of epistemic adverbials or particles, utterance type, and negation, were also discussed as being of importance for the interpr…
author: Wärnsby, Anna
language: eng
keywords: Languages and Literature, English language and literature, semiotics, syntax, modal verbs, modality, English-Swedish Parallel Corpus, epistemic, deontic, dynamic, indeterminacy, Controllability, Transitivity, Data Mining, pragmatics, Engelska (språk och litteratur), semantics, Grammar, Grammatik, semantik, semiotik
date published: 2006
date modified: 2026-07-24T03:00:02Z
provider: University of Lund
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: English Studies