On the Conjectural Usage of deshō

A Proposal From the Viewpoint of Pedagogical Grammar

Abstract

Deshō has two meanings: conjecture and confirmation. By using corpus data, this paper demonstrates that the former is used much less than the latter in everyday conversation. Usage of deshō in "bare" form (i.e. without sentence-final particles) is especially rare. Deshō can be used in bare form only when the speaker is a "specialist". However, the conjectural deshō appears in most basic-level textbooks. We can presume that such frequent appearance results from descriptive grammar, where the conjectural usage of deshō/darō is regarded as fundamental. Such influence from descriptive grammar is harmful and must be eliminated. Instead, this paper proposes a natural order for the introduction of expressions containing deshō/darō from the viewpoint of pedagogical grammar, the latter being independent of descriptive grammar.