Communicative function of demonstratives focusing on visibility

Abstract

This study investigated whether the use of demonstratives is influenced by the distance of the referent and/or its visibility from the perspective of the speaker or addressee. We examined these in two typologically different languages: Chinese, which has a two-demonstrative system and is sometimes observed as egocentric, and Japanese, which has a three-demonstrative system and is sometimes observed as sociocentric. The results show that distance affects both languages; however, in Japanese, the medium demonstrative sore is influenced by visibility when the referent is visible to the addressee, reflecting sociocentric sensitivity. Chinese demonstratives depend primarily on physical distance, with no significant visibility effect. Previous studies of demonstratives and perceptual visibility have not considered situations in which the speaker and addressee differ in what they can see. Our study shows for the first time that an important characteristic of three-term demonstrative systems is the extent to which speakers consider an addressee’s visual perspective.