A Cognitive Deictic Study On The Shifting Of Tense In Fictional Discourse

Deixis is a concept with great significance in pragmatics,which receives extensive attention in academia.With the development of cognitive science,theories of cognitive deixis have improved gradually.As an indispensable component of cognitive temporal deixis,tense is not merely essential,but also has peculiar effects in the interaction of literary discourse.Although the existing studies on the cognitive pragmastylistic function brought about by the narrative tense and its alternation in literary discourse have reached to a certain degree,the relationship of tense shift,cognitive viewpoint shift and pragmastylistic function is not crystalized.The present study has tentatively proposed a model to illustrate the pragmastylistic effect of the tense shift in fictional discourse,which is based on the cognitive deictic shift theory raised by Stockwell(2002),and absorbs the quintessence of the pragmatic function of present tense in literary work advanced by Black(2006).Selected as the language data,short stories of the Nobel Prize winner Alice Munro are analyzed in order to explore the realization of the pragmastylistic function of tense shift in fictional discourse.The study finds that the cognitive deictic shift induced by tense shift can be divided into three categories: narrator-to-character shift,narrator-to-author shift and narrator-to-narrator(in different time zones)shift.In addition to the functions that attract readers' attention and shorten the distance between readers and the text,the three varieties of shift possess distinct pragmastylistic effects:(1)The switch from narrator to character can characterize multi-dimensionally and enhance the involvement of readers through expressing the character's thoughts and depicting what the character sees,hears and says.(2)The switch from narrator to author can convey the attitude of the author,enhance the enjoyment of reading and arouse the empathy of readers by presenting information that is supposed to be the truth,inserting the comments of the author and utilizing omniscient description to construct the feeling of dissociation.(3)The switch from narrator to narrator in different time zones can assist readers to conceptualize the framework of narrative time and promotethe plot development as well as reinforce the extension of narration.By means of tense shift,Munro's short stories make intricate configurations of time and space,highlight splendid images of female,and increase the interest of readers.In conclusion,the current cognitive deictic study of tense shift in fictional discourse has both theoretical and practical implications for future researches.It has not only expanded the scope of application for cognitive deictic shift theory,which echoes with the trend of interdisciplinary study of linguistics and literature,but has also provided a new perspective for the illustration of Munro and literary work,offering instructive guidance to readers and writers about appreciating literature and creating literary works,respectively.