The Principle of Indirect Means in language use and language structure

Abstract

The study proposes that in some languages, there exists a principle according to which indirect rather than direct means of expression are used whenever the goals of speech involve certain functional domains. We call this the Principle of Indirect Means. Direct means are those that grammatically or lexically encode a given function without dependence on contextual knowledge. Indirect means are those that although they code function A within the grammatical system of the language, are deployed for the coding of function B. The principle allows us to provide a unified explanation for certain phenomena in language use and language structure that in the past received unrelated explanations. The Principle of Indirect Means, a principle of language use, exerts a powerful force on language change. It creates a major motivation for grammaticalization and results in a richness of means of expression in the domains to which it applies. The Principle of Indirect Means is also a major motivation for the creation of metaphors. The present study defines the principle, provides the evidence for its existence, and describes the implication of the principle for language use, language structure, and language change. The study also posits several typological questions. The argumentation in this study is based on cross-linguistic data.