Dialogue, language and meaning : variations on Bakhtinian themes

Abstract

The present work, which consists of the introductory part and five independent articles, discusses linguistic aspects of dialogism and concentrates, specifically, on the dialogical notion of meaning as first discussed by Mikhail Bakhtin and Valentin Voloshinov. This work is theoretical in nature and aims, through a conceptual analysis, to explicate the dialogical conception of language and meaning. First, it concentrates on the dialogical account of meaning per se, analytically discussing and further developing the dialogical notion of meaning potential. The aim is to make explicit certain important philosophical assumptions that underlie the dialogical view of meaning and to further develop the notion of meaning potential. Second, the present study also discusses the relation that holds between the linguistic ideas of Bakhtin and Voloshinov and the overall system of dialogical thinking. Thus, it also deals with the general philosophical background assumptions of dialogism, especially its epistemological and ontological implications. It is argued that the dialogical conception of meaning is inseparable from the epistemological and ontological aspects of dialogism. In addition, the notion of meaning potential is regarded as analogous to Bakhtin's considerations of the architectonics of the act in which the uniqueness and irreducability of actual acts is emphasized. However, the dialogical account of meaning does not lead to a relativistic position according to which meanings are constructed in situations in toto. To make this clear the notion of meaning potential is discussed within the framework of use-theory of meaning. It is argued that the interrelation between given and created aspects of meaning is emergent in nature. Meaning potentials are seen as resources for social interaction that are simultaneously recreated via factual language use.