Sentence Function - Allofunctional Implicature

Allofunctional Implicature

There are many instances in which a sentence can be grammatically shaped as one function, yet in actual execution, may serve a completely different purpose than suggested by the way it was constructed; hence, allofunctional, to mean 'serving a different purpose than originally intended'. Or in other words, it is very subtly yet unequivocally implied by process of pragmatics that its function must be changed to another in order for the sentence to make sense in the present context of conversation.

A classic example would be the "question": Could you pass the salt?

In the above sentence, although it is grammatically structured as a question, it can quite safely be inferred that the speaker is not inquiring as to whether the person they are addressing is physically capable of passing the salt at the dinnertable or not. What the speaker really wants is to get the salt. It is a request, or call for action as opposed to information, thus making the sentence allofunctional (note that adding a word like 'please' at the end would tend to make this point clearer, and when posed as a question, this request is perceived as being more polite than if it were simply in the natural imperative). Therefore, what at first may come off as an interrogative sentence upon initial delivery, the listener must almost immediately reinterpret as an imperative and respond accordingly.

Other examples include:

• Exclamative interrogative (interrogative structure with exclamative function): Why does this keep happening to me?
  • Upon uttering the above phrase, I just want to vent out my frustration vocally.

• Imperative declarative (declarative structure with imperative function): I would feel more comfortable if you wore your seatbelt.
  • If I say this to you I'm strongly urging you to buckle up.

The list goes on, and as a matter of fact, all 12 combinations between each of the four functions and their three other counterparts should be theoretically possible.

Another important point to note is that the allofunctionality of a sentence is completely language specific as to how it differentiates function. To exemplify this, we can look at English and generalize that imperative sentences, when affirmative, tend to begin with the verb, while declarative sentences that are prosaic will almost always start with the subject (this is because in the imperative, the subject is implied, or obviously unmistakable, since it is the subject itself which is being spoken to). All that being taken into account, we can more clearly see why a statement such as, You are not going to that bar. (I forbid it), would qualify as allofunctional.