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A Study of English Conundrums’ Setting and Solving from the Perspective of Relevance Theory

Received: 06 July 2016    Accepted:     Published: 07 July 2016
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Abstract

English conundrums, as an important form of English riddles, are very interesting and bring entertainment to people’s daily life. For its vivid form, specific purpose, and well-designed content, English conundrums raise researching interests among more and more scholars. These studies range from anthropology, folklore to rhetoric. In the recent decades, many scholars have also begun to explore them from linguistic perspectives. This paper tries to analyze English conundrums under the guidance of Relevance Theory, aiming to explain the dynamical process of setting and solving of English conundrums. After an intensive study, the author finds that principles of relevance, the cognitive context and the non-demonstrative inference are powerful for explaining the setting and solving of English conundrums.

DOI 10.11648/j.hss.20160404.14
Published in Humanities and Social Sciences (Volume 4, Issue 4, July 2016)
Page(s) 106-112
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Relevance Theory, English Conundrums, Setting and Solving

References
[1] R. P. Wang, English Riddle Highlights, Dalian: Dalian University of Technology Press, 1999.
[2] Y. Li, “A semantic study of English conundrums,” Jilin University, 2006.
[3] A. Taylor, English Riddles from Oral Tradition. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1951.
[4] M. Bryant, Riddles Ancient and Modern. Hutchinson Publishing House, 1983.
[5] Y. J. Zhao, “Relevance theory to interpret brain teasers Settings and solution,” J. Journal of Henan university of science and technology.
[6] B. Q. Jiang and Y. Liu, “Interpretation about Brain-twisters in the Perspective of Relevance Theory,” J. Journal of Hunan Institute of Humanities, Science and Technology, 2010.
[7] Y. S. Zhang, M. X. Ou and W. P. Wang, “An exploration of English conundrum in the perspective of relevance theory” J. Journal of Mudanjiang University, 2012.
[8] D. Sperber, D. Wilson, Relevance: Communication and Cognition (2nded.). Oxford: Blackwell, 2001, pp. 63-260.
[9] X. R. Chen, A New Coursebook in Pragmatics. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, 2009, pp. 150.
[10] Z. R. He, Y. P. Ran, The basics of cognitive pragmatics—Relevance Theory. J. Modern Chinese Language, 1998.
Author Information
  • English Department, North China Electric Power University, Baoding, China

  • English Department, North China Electric Power University, Baoding, China

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  • APA Style

    Tian Dong, Rui-hong Yin. (2016). A Study of English Conundrums’ Setting and Solving from the Perspective of Relevance Theory. Humanities and Social Sciences, 4(4), 106-112. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hss.20160404.14

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    Tian Dong; Rui-hong Yin. A Study of English Conundrums’ Setting and Solving from the Perspective of Relevance Theory. Humanit. Soc. Sci. 2016, 4(4), 106-112. doi: 10.11648/j.hss.20160404.14

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    AMA Style

    Tian Dong, Rui-hong Yin. A Study of English Conundrums’ Setting and Solving from the Perspective of Relevance Theory. Humanit Soc Sci. 2016;4(4):106-112. doi: 10.11648/j.hss.20160404.14

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  • @article{10.11648/j.hss.20160404.14,
      author = {Tian Dong and Rui-hong Yin},
      title = {A Study of English Conundrums’ Setting and Solving from the Perspective of Relevance Theory},
      journal = {Humanities and Social Sciences},
      volume = {4},
      number = {4},
      pages = {106-112},
      doi = {10.11648/j.hss.20160404.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hss.20160404.14},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.hss.20160404.14},
      abstract = {English conundrums, as an important form of English riddles, are very interesting and bring entertainment to people’s daily life. For its vivid form, specific purpose, and well-designed content, English conundrums raise researching interests among more and more scholars. These studies range from anthropology, folklore to rhetoric. In the recent decades, many scholars have also begun to explore them from linguistic perspectives. This paper tries to analyze English conundrums under the guidance of Relevance Theory, aiming to explain the dynamical process of setting and solving of English conundrums. After an intensive study, the author finds that principles of relevance, the cognitive context and the non-demonstrative inference are powerful for explaining the setting and solving of English conundrums.},
     year = {2016}
    }
    

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