(Luận văn thạc sĩ) a study on epistemic modality in english inspirational speeches

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING QUY NHON UNIVERSITY TRỊNH MAI SƯƠNG A STUDY ON EPISTEMIC MODALITY IN ENGLISH INSPIRATIONAL SPEECHES h Field English Linguistics Code 8220201 Supervisor: Assoc Prof Dr Nguyễn Thị Thu Hiền BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC QUY NHƠN TRỊNH MAI SƯƠNG TÌNH THÁI NHẬN THỨC THỂ HIỆN TRONG CÁC BÀI PHÁT BIỂU TRUYỀN CẢM HỨNG h BẰNG TIẾNG ANH Chuyên ngành Ngôn ngữ Anh Mã số 8220201 Người hướng dẫn: PGS.TS Nguyễn Thị Thu Hiền i STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I certify that the thesis entitled A Study on Epistemic Modality in English Inspirational Speeches is my own original work I further declare that this paper has not been submitted for the award of any other degree or diploma Any works of other authors consulted in this thesis are listed in the reference Quy Nhon, 2021 h ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this graduation thesis is the result of not only my own efforts but also other assistance of organizations and individuals to whom I would like to express my deepest gratitude First of all, I am sincerely grateful to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Dr Nguyen Thi Thu Hien, who has devoted her time and effort to giving critical comments and precious advice for me in spite of her huge workload Without her patience and constant encouragement during the process of conducting this study, the work would never have been completed Secondly, my warmest thanks go to all lecturers from the Department of Foreign Languages and the staff of the Department of Postgraduate Training for their valuable courses and endless support during my study at the university h Last but not least, I would like to take this opportunity to thank my beloved family and friends, who have always believed in me and given me strength to overcome all the troubles I encountered during the fulfillment of this research iii ABSTRACT Epistemic modality has been a well-researched area for decades The present paper aims to investigate the employment of epistemic means namely modal auxiliaries, modal adverbs, modal lexical verbs, modal adjectives and modal nouns in the English inspirational speeches by native speakers Both qualitative and quantitative methods are mainly used combining with descriptive methods to serve the process of data analysis In this study, 30 inspirational speeches were transcribed from the inspiring videos on Youtube and Ted Talks to form the data set The data was then closely examined regarding the various types of epistemic markers and degrees of commitment The findings indicate a clear preference for modal auxiliaries over other types of epistemic markers Meanwhile, modal nouns are the by far least frequent type of markers in the data The examination of epistemic devices also shows h the speaker’s tendency to select devices expressing the high commitment to frame their statements with personal attitudes and opinions The issues unfolded from this study are hoped to offer a basis for further research related to epistemic modality It is also expected that the thesis could contribute to a better understanding of epistemic means in communication in general and in inspirational speeches in particular iv TABLE OF CONTENTS STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iiii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF TABLES vi LIST OF FIGURES vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Aim and objectives 1.2.1 Aim 1.2.2 Objectives h 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Scope of the study 1.5 Design of the study CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Modality 2.1.1 Definition of Modality 2.1.2 Classification of Modality 2.2 Epistemic Modality 2.2.1 Definition of Epistemic Modality 2.2.2 Classification of Epistemic Modality 11 2.2.3 Epistemic Modality Markers 15 2.3 Theory of Motivation and Inspirational Speech 25 2.3.1 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs 25 2.3.2 Inspirational Speech 27 v 2.4 A Review of Previous Study on Modality Used in Different Genres 29 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 33 3.1 Research Methods 33 3.2 Data Collection 33 3.3 Procedures 34 3.4 Data analysis 34 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 37 4.1 Frequency of EM markers in the speeches 37 4.1.1 Modal Auxiliaries 38 4.1.2 Modal Adverbs 45 4.1.3 Modal Lexical Verbs 49 4.1.4 Modal Adjectives 54 4.1.5 Modal Nouns 56 h 4.2 Degrees of commitment in the speeches 58 4.2.1 High Engagement 60 4.2.2 Medium Engagement 63 4.2.2 Low Engagement 66 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS 68 5.1 Conclusions 68 5.2 Implications 70 5.3 Limitations and Suggestions for Further Research 71 REFERENCES 73 APPENDIX vi LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 The possibility/ necessity notions of epistemic, deontic and dynamic modality Table 2.2 Examples of judgments and evidentials 13 Table 2.3 Epistemic markers 24 Table 4.1 Frequency and Distribution of Types of Epistemic Markers 37 Table 4.2 Frequency and Distribution of Epistemic Modal Auxiliaries 38 Table 4.3 Frequency and Distribution of Epistemic Modal Adverbs 45 Table 4.4 Frequency and Distribution of Modal Lexical Verbs 49 Table 4.5 Frequency and Distribution of Epistemic Modal Adjectives 55 h Table 4.6 Frequency and Distribution of High Engagement Markers 60 Table 4.7 Frequency and Distribution of Medium Engagement Markers 64 Table 4.8 Frequency and Distribution of Low Engagement Markers 66 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs 26 Figure 4.1 Distribution of types of epistemic markers 38 Figure 4.2 Distribution of levels of commitment 59 h CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale In inspirational speeches, as a type of persuasive discourse, the speakers are in the business of selling their products – their own practical experience and strategies that will create a positive emotional experience for the audiences (Erika, 2020) and influence their own ideas and decisions In Erika’s vein, an inspirational speech is often made so as to have intended effects on the audience: it “pushes apathy away and awakens people to new and exciting possibilities” They are able to transcend their limitations and mundane lives to progress toward their goals Most often, inspiration is found in others who say something or something thought-provoking and h meaningful Thus, choice of words is considered as a matter of prime importance in composing an inspirational speech Accordingly, to express the degrees of truth and the speakers’ commitment to the truth of the utterance, the speakers have an array of epistemic device which can exert an intended effect on the audience This linguistic device is an important means of expressing not only interpersonal functions, but also social roles of the speaker and the hearer (Halliday, 1970) Because of its important role in social communication, epistemic modality (EM) has been approached experimentally by different international scholars, (e.g Aidinlou & Mohammadpour, 2012; Baumgarten & House, 2010; Fetzer, 2014; Khosravi, 2016; Milkovich & Sitarica, 2017; Rubin, 2010; Tôn Nữ Mỹ Nhật & Nguyễn Thị Diệu Minh, 2019) While the studies reported above deal mostly with specific characteristics of EM such as lexical verbs “I think”, “I don’t know”, “I mean”, or specific EM’s functions in