10.2 Indexicals and demonstratives

Indexicals and Demonstratives

Indexicals and demonstratives are words whose meaning depends on the context in which they're uttered. Words like "I," "you," "here," "this," and "that" don't have a fixed referent the way a proper name like "Paris" does. Instead, they point to elements of the speech situation: who's speaking, who's being addressed, where and when the conversation happens, and what objects are nearby. Understanding how these expressions work is central to understanding how language connects to the world around it.

Properties of Indexicals and Demonstratives

Indexicals and demonstratives are both types of deictic expressions, meaning they require context for interpretation. But they do slightly different jobs.

• Indexicals directly refer to elements of the speech context: I, you, here, now, today, yesterday, tomorrow.
• Demonstratives point to specific entities in the environment: this, that, these, those.

Both types refer to entities in the context of the utterance. That referent can be a person (the speaker or addressee), a place, a time, or an object. The key function they share is guiding the hearer's attention to the intended referent without requiring a full description. Saying "this book" is far more efficient than saying "the red hardcover sitting on the left side of the table closest to me."

Contextual Encoding in Language

Different indexicals encode different aspects of the speech situation:

• "I" encodes the speaker role. It always refers to whoever is producing the utterance.
• "You" encodes the addressee role. It refers to whoever is being spoken to.
• "Here" and "now" encode the location and time of the utterance.

Demonstratives, on the other hand, encode relative distance and accessibility:

• "This" / "these" signal proximity to the speaker (physically or in terms of discourse focus).
• "That" / "those" signal distance from the speaker or lesser accessibility.

For interpretation to succeed, the speaker and hearer need shared context. The hearer has to identify which contextual elements the expression is picking out. Accompanying gestures often play a role here. If someone says "hand me that" while pointing at a mug on the counter, the pointing gesture resolves what "that" refers to.

Pure Indexicals vs. Demonstratives

This is a distinction introduced by philosopher David Kaplan, and it's one of the most important concepts in this topic.

• Pure indexicals have a fixed rule that determines their referent automatically from the context. "I" always refers to the speaker. "Today" always refers to the day of the utterance. No pointing or demonstration is needed, and there's no flexibility in what they pick out.
• Demonstratives require something extra, typically a gesture, a glance, or some other act of demonstration, to fix their referent. "This" and "that" on their own are underspecified. The speaker has to indicate which "this" or "that" they mean.

Because of this difference, pure indexicals are more constrained in interpretation, while demonstratives allow for more pragmatic flexibility. A speaker using a demonstrative can choose among several potential referents and direct the hearer's attention accordingly.

The choice between the two can also carry pragmatic weight. For example, a speaker who says "that idea" rather than simply referring to it by name may be creating emphasis or signaling contrast with another idea under discussion.

Reference Resolution Through Indexicals

When a hearer encounters an indexical or demonstrative, they go through a process of reference resolution to figure out what's being referred to. This process works roughly like this:

1. Identify the relevant aspects of context. Who is the speaker? Who is the addressee? Where and when is the utterance happening?
2. Use the semantic meaning of the expression. "I" points to the speaker; "here" points to the location; "that" points to something distant or previously mentioned.
3. Factor in any demonstration. If the speaker is pointing, gesturing, or looking at something, use that information to narrow down the referent.
4. Apply pragmatic reasoning. The referent should be relevant to the ongoing conversation, and you should assume the speaker is being cooperative (following Gricean principles).

Sometimes the referent is obvious. If someone says "I'm tired," there's no ambiguity about who "I" refers to. But demonstratives can be genuinely ambiguous. If someone says "that one" in a room full of objects, the hearer may need to combine the linguistic meaning, any gestures, and their understanding of the speaker's communicative goals to land on the right referent. Successful reference resolution always integrates the encoded meaning of the expression with the broader context and the speaker's likely intentions.