PhD Thesis
PhD Thesis
La forme des interrogatives dans le Corpus suisse de SMS en français. Étude multidimensionnelle. University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland & Paris 3 Sorbonne Nouvelle University, France »»»
La forme des interrogatives dans le Corpus suisse de SMS en français. Étude multidimensionnelle. University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland & Paris 3 Sorbonne Nouvelle University, France »»»
Abstract in English
Abstract in English
A corpus-driven study of French interrogative structures in Swiss SMS messages
A corpus-driven study of French interrogative structures in Swiss SMS messages
This thesis is part of the project FNS Sinergia 136230 "SMS communication in Switzerland: Facets of Linguistic Variation in a Multilingual Country". The aim of the thesis is to provide analysis of the variety of French interrogative structures in the Swiss SMS Corpus. It also attempts to show how the data originating from spontaneous electronic interaction (instant messaging, texting, WhatsApp, etc.) allows us to broaden the scope and to take a new look at the phenomena of syntactic variation. The French language is known for the wide variety of interrogative structures: 3 variants for yes/no questions (Tu vas au cours ?, Vas-tu au cours ?, Est-ce que tu vas au cours ?), and at least six or eight variants for wh- questions (Tu vas où ?, Où tu vas ?, Où vas-tu ?, Où va ton frère ?, Où est-ce que tu vas ?, Qui va au cours ?, Où c’est que tu vas ?, C’est où que tu vas ?). Therefore, our goal is to understand how SMS writers make the choice between available French interrogative structures. The hypothesis of this study is functionalist: it postulates that under the pressure of various linguistic and non-linguistic constraints, the SMS writer chooses that variant which allows him to best achieve given communicative goals. In order to identify different types of constraints or factors that may influence the choice of variants, a multidimensional analysis model is applied which focuses simultaneously on grammatical, interactional and sociolinguistic parameters.
This thesis is part of the project FNS Sinergia 136230 "SMS communication in Switzerland: Facets of Linguistic Variation in a Multilingual Country". The aim of the thesis is to provide analysis of the variety of French interrogative structures in the Swiss SMS Corpus. It also attempts to show how the data originating from spontaneous electronic interaction (instant messaging, texting, WhatsApp, etc.) allows us to broaden the scope and to take a new look at the phenomena of syntactic variation. The French language is known for the wide variety of interrogative structures: 3 variants for yes/no questions (Tu vas au cours ?, Vas-tu au cours ?, Est-ce que tu vas au cours ?), and at least six or eight variants for wh- questions (Tu vas où ?, Où tu vas ?, Où vas-tu ?, Où va ton frère ?, Où est-ce que tu vas ?, Qui va au cours ?, Où c’est que tu vas ?, C’est où que tu vas ?). Therefore, our goal is to understand how SMS writers make the choice between available French interrogative structures. The hypothesis of this study is functionalist: it postulates that under the pressure of various linguistic and non-linguistic constraints, the SMS writer chooses that variant which allows him to best achieve given communicative goals. In order to identify different types of constraints or factors that may influence the choice of variants, a multidimensional analysis model is applied which focuses simultaneously on grammatical, interactional and sociolinguistic parameters.
Key-words: French language, syntactic variation, interrogative structures, SMS communication, informal French
Key-words: French language, syntactic variation, interrogative structures, SMS communication, informal French