When Written is Spoken: Dislocation and the Oral Code

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis article suggests a refinement of the link between dislocated constructions and the oral code. The research is based on an investigation of a mixed-medium corpus of contemporary French, including spoken language, journalistic prose and literary fiction. It is shown first that the form and function of dislocations vary according to the level of orality of the voice in which they are found: in particular, the intermediary nature of citations in newspaper articles is emphasised. It is then argued that the strict association of dislocation with the stylistic function of orality should be modified, since conveying orality does not always seem to be the primary motivation for dislocation.