I say as a Pragmatic Marker in Shakespeare

Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of the usage of I say in Shakespeare from the viewpoint of grammaticalization. Our main concern is first of all to describe in which circumstances I say appears as a pragmatic marker. Then, we will argue that I say functions as a pragmatic marker when it is used in imperatives and vocatives. Next, we will claim that differences in the punctuation among Shakespeare's four Folios indicate the development from a repetition marker to a pragmatic marker. Furthermore, the examples of I say taken from other dramatists and the Helsinki Corpus will be dealt with in order to compare them with those in Shakespeare. We would like to show in what syntactical conditions and in what genres it was mainly used in Early Modern English.