Course content

The course investigates topics in semantics and pragmatics including how meaning is expressed in natural language and the principles that lie behind the interpretation of utterances in specific situations. It addresses topics such as how words and sentences (linguistic objects) relate to entities in the world; whether this relationship is mediated by concepts; the formal representation of meaning; how the study of meaning is relevant to other areas of linguistic analysis such as syntax; how and why language differs from other communication systems; and how language is employed to communicate various types of meaning.

Learning outcome

Candidates who have passed this course
- have insight into basic issues of linguistic semantics, including how linguistic expressions relate to entities in the world, meaning relations between linguistic expressions, and the relation between meaning and truth.
- have insight into basic issues in pragmatics, including how context and pragmatic principles affect interpretation.
- have insight into how semantic and pragmatics interact and relate to neighbouring fields (e.g., lexical theory, morphology and syntax).
- understand how and why language differs from other communication systems, and how language is employed to communicate various types of meaning.
- are able to describe and analyse how people handle and exploit various semantic and pragmatic phenomena in everyday communication.

Learning methods and activities

Lectures, seminars, supervision. Students are required to use the course learning platform regularly. Approved obligatory assignment is valid for 2 semesters (the semester in which the approval is given, plus the following semester).

The required readings are in English and classes will be taught in English. Students admitted to an English program shall, as a rule, do the obligatory assignments in English. Students admitted to a Norwegian/Scandinavian studies program shall, as a rule, do the obligatory assignments in Norwegian.

Obligatory assignment: Written work of ca. 2500 words/5–6 pages, which may be split over several assignments. Online quizzes may substitute for a portion of this.

Compulsory assignments

• Written work of ca. 2500 words/5-6 pages

Recommended previous knowledge

Undergraduate language and linguistics courses.

Course materials

Curriculum/reading list will be made available at the beginning of the semester.

Credit reductions