Chapter 4. The use of interjections as a discourse phenomenon

Abstract

This study describes and compares two conventionalized uses of interjections in traditional narratives in Chuvash (Turkic) and Wan (Mande). First, interjections are shown to be associated with a quotative function: they help signal instances of reported speech. The use of interjections interacts with the grammatical marking of reported speech: the presence of an interjection is negatively correlated with the presence of a grammaticalized quotative element. Second, in Chuvash, but not in Wan, interjections are used, outside the context of reported speech, to emphasize an event’s intensity or duration. We relate the absence of an intensifying function in Wan to competition between interjections and ideophones. The two phenomena shed light on the interaction between interjections and language-specific grammatical and lexical resources.