Dynamic Transformation From Low To High Context In Language Use

Context, being a typical topic in pragmatics is drawing more attention from language users. Among 1990s, Verschueren, a great linguist, creatively put forward pragmatics perspective; which, not only made identification for pragmatics but also infused fresh blood to language study. Contemporary with Verschueren, Sperber and Wilson kept a new record in research of communication itself, they considered it as a cognitive event and put forward relevance theory based this. Above two claims provide strong theoretical foundation for research on dynamics between low and high context. They were proposed by expert on intercultural communication Edward Hall in 1960s. He argued that communication in high context was in the way that messages were embodied in mutual contextual knowledge, while in low context; communication heavily relied on linguistic code. In other words, communication in high context is a more beneficial mode of talking.Based on the above three claims, the present paper analyzed dynamics between low and high context from angle of adaptation theory and relevance theory alternatively. Experiment was made for want of measurements that can cause transformation from low to high context. Then, significance of dynamics between low and high context in foreign language study was put forward. As a result, hypotheses of the very thesis were proved:(1) context will transform from low to high dynamically during language use (2) both language user and context play important roles in this kind of transformation.Evidences show that high context is an inexorable trend in language communication; low context is the starting extreme, and high context is the ending point. When low context is necessary to change into high context, efforts outside context will help the contextual transformation.