An Analysis of Oprah Winfrey's Speech at USC in 2018 from the Perspective of Interpersonal Function_英语论文

摘要

毕业致辞是大学生生活中浓墨重彩的一笔，经常会给毕业生留下终生难忘的记忆。人际意义资源经常被运用在毕业致辞中以显示演讲者的角色、地位、态度、意愿和观点，或影响听众的行为和态度。奥普拉·温弗瑞是美国著名的脱口秀主持人，也是全美公认的优秀演讲女王，在演讲中非常擅长利用人际意义资源。所以，本文分析奥普拉·温弗瑞在南加州大学演讲的人际意义及其实现方式。研究结果显示，在语气系统上，陈述语气占主导地位。在情态量值上，低量值的情态动词占绝对优势。在人称系统上，第二人称的使用次数最多。分析认为，陈述语气之所以占主导地位是因为毕业演讲的主要功能是传达信息，陈述句可以实现信息传达，而且使整个演讲更加客观可信。低量值的情态动词则有助于演讲者表达他的观点和建议，拉近与听众的距离，使他们更容易接受这些观点和建议。第二人称使用次数多说明演讲者以听众为中心，能有效的让听众参与到演讲中。

关键词：人际功能  语气  情态  人称

Abstract

Commencement address is an important part in graduate’s life, which often leaves the graduates with unforgettable memories. The resources of interpersonal meanings are often used in commencement address to show the role, status, attitude, purpose and viewpoint of the speakers, or to influence the behavior and attitude of the listeners. Oprah Winfrey is a famous talk show host and nationally recognized as a queen of speech. She is quite skilled in using resources of interpersonal meanings. Therefore, this thesis will explore the interpersonal meanings in Oprah Winfrey’s speech at USC. As the results of the analysis show, the declarative mood is dominant among the moods; the low-value modal verb takes up the largest percentage and the second person is most frequently used among the three types of person. According to the analysis, the declarative sentence can realize the information transmission that is in line with the main function of commencement address, and make the whole speech more objective and credible. The low-value modal verb is conducive to expressing the speakers’ opinions and suggestions so as to shorten the distance between them and listeners and make listeners accept their opinions and suggestions more easily. Furthermore, the frequent use of the second person indicates that the speaker is audience-centered and it can effectively involve the audience in the speech.

Key words: Interpersonal Function  Mood  Modality  Personal Pronoun 

Contents

Chapter One  Introduction 1

1.1  Research Background 1

1.2  Purpose and Significance of This Research 2

1.3  Structure of This Thesis 3

Chapter Two  Literature Review 4

2.1  Previous Studies on Interpersonal Function in Discourses 4

2.1.1 Relevant Studies Abroad 4

2.1.2 Relevant Studies at Home 5

2.2  Studies on Commencement Addresses 6

2.2.1 Relevant Studies Abroad 7

2.2.2 Relevant Studies at Home 7

2.3  Comments 8

Chapter Three  Theoretical Framework 9

3.1  Introduction 9

3.2  Brief Introduction to Interpersonal Function 9

3.3  Theories Applied in This Thesis 10

3.3.1 Mood System 10

3.3.2 Modality System 11

3.3.3 Personal Pronoun System 12

Chapter Four  Discourse Analysis of Oprah Winfrey's Address at USC 14

4.1  Introduction 14

4.2  Research Design 14

4.2.1 Research Methodology 14

4.2.2 Data Collection 15

4.2.3 Research Questions 15

4.3  Analysis of Mood System 15

4.3.1 Interpersonal Function of Declaratives 17

4.3.2 Interpersonal Function of Imperatives 18

4.3.3 Interpersonal Function of Interrogatives 19

4.4  Analysis of Modality System 21

4.4.1 “Can” and Its Interpersonal Function 23

4.4.2 “Will” and Its Interpersonal Function 24

4.4.3 “Need” and Its Interpersonal Function 24

4.5  Analysis of Personal Pronoun System 25

4.5.1 First Person and Its Interpersonal Function 26

4.5.2 Second Person and Its Interpersonal Function 27

4.5.3 Third Person and Its Interpersonal Function 28

Chapter Five  Conclusion 30

5.1  Major Findings 30

5.2  Limitations of This Study and Suggestions for Future Studies 32

Bibliography

Acknowledgements