Spanish Semantics and Pragmatics
Code: 106370 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Spanish Language and Literature | OB | 3 |
Contact
- Name:
- Yolanda Rodríguez Sellés
- Email:
- yolanda.rodriguez@uab.cat
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
By obtaining the minimum of credits in basic training subjects, students have demonstrated to have acquired the basic competences and they will be able to express themselves orally and in writing. For this reason, any spelling and expression errors that may be committed by the student in the performance of the evaluation activities planned during the subject will lead to a score decrease in the final grade. Activities, practical sessions and papers submitted in the course must be original and under no circumstances will the total or partial plagiarism of third-party materials published on any medium be admitted. Any submission of non-original material without properly indicating its origin will automatically result in a failure
rating (0).
Objectives and Contextualisation
Spanish Semantics and Pragmatics course is part of the 30 compulsory credits of the subject Spanish language: synchrony. This course has two primary goals. The first one is to introduce the main topics of the study of denotative meaning to the student. The second one is to make the student become familiar with those aspects of the meaning related to the usage of language. At the end of the course, the student must be able to:
- Know the basic reference works on Semantics and Pragmatics
- Identify which aspects of the study of meaning belong to Semantics and which ones to Pragmatics
- Know the existing links between Semantics, Pragmatics and other subjects, including linguistic ones (Syntax, Lexicology and Morphology), and non-linguistic (Philosophy, Logics, Psychology and Sociology).
- Master the basic concepts and tools that enable analysis and argumentationin Semantics and Pragmatics.
Competences
- Analyse the main phonetic, phonological, morphological, syntactic, lexical and semantic properties of the Spanish language, its evolution throughout history and its current structure.
- Develop arguments applicable to the fields of Hispanic literature, literary theory, Spanish language and linguistics, and evaluate their academic relevance.
- Introduce changes in the methods and processes of the field of knowledge to provide innovative responses to the needs and demands of society.
- Students can apply the knowledge to their own work or vocation in a professional manner and have the powers generally demonstrated by preparing and defending arguments and solving problems within their area of study.
- Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
- Use digital tools and specific documentary sources to gather and organise information.
Learning Outcomes
- Acquire in-depth phonetic knowledge so that it can be applied to other interdisciplinary fields.
- Characterise linguistic phenomena taking into account the different levels of analysis.
- Describe the phonological system of Spanish on the basis of the distribution, relationships and articulatory and acoustic properties of its elements.
- Identify and describe the syntactic constructions of Spanish.
- Identify the constituents of a word and the levels at which they operate.
- Justify by means of appropriate terminology the analysis of data from a linguistic point of view.
- Make linguistic predictions and inferences about the content of a text.
- Propose new ways of measuring success or failure in the implementation of proposals or innovative ideas.
- Recognise acoustically and articulately the sounds and prosody of Spanish.
- Recognise the links between compositional semantics and other disciplines, both linguistic (syntax, lexicology, pragmatics) and non-linguistic (philosophy, logic, mathematics).
- Use digital tools to obtain, classify, interpret and analyse relevant data related to the study of Spanish language and literature.
- Use the appropriate terminology in the construction of an academic text and in the transmission of their knowledge.
- Use traditional sources to obtain, classify, interpret and analyse relevant data related to the study of Spanish language and literature.
Content
1. Introduction to Semantics.
2. The semantic information of simple sentences.
3. The semantic structure of simple sentences.
4. Introduction to Pragmatics.
5. Meaning and communicative intention.
6. Meaning and interpretation.
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Master classes | 26.25 | 1.05 | |
| To solve exercices | 26.25 | 1.05 | |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Review readings | 6 | 0.24 | |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Exercices preparation | 42.75 | 1.71 | |
| Readings of references | 18.5 | 0.74 | |
| Self-assessment exercices | 18.5 | 0.74 |
The learning of this subject by the students is distributed as follows:
Directed activities (35%). These activities are divided into master classes and classroom practices led by the teacher, in which theoretical explanation is combined with solution of exercises and discussion of
all types of texts.
Supervised activities (10%). These tutorials are programmed by the teacher, dedicated to correcting and commenting on problems related to different levels of linguistic analysis.
Autonomous activities (50%). These activities include both time devoted to individual study and production of reviews, papers and analytical comments written, as well as oral presentations.
Assessment activities (5%). The evaluation of the subject will be describe in Assessment section.
15 minutes of a class will be reserved, within the timetable established by the centre/title, for the complementation by the students of the assessment surveys of the teaching staff's performance and the assessment of the subject.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delivery of homework | 10% | 3.75 | 0.15 | 1, 2, 3, 7, 12, 11, 13, 5, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10 |
| Test about Pragmatics | 45% | 4 | 0.16 | 1, 2, 3, 7, 12, 5, 4, 6, 9, 10 |
| Test about Semantics | 45% | 4 | 0.16 | 1, 2, 3, 7, 12, 11, 13, 5, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10 |
1. Continuous assessment
1.1. Criteria for the grading the course
In order to pass the course, after completing the three evaluable activities mentioned above and after applying the percentages indicated above, the student must get a final grade equal or greater than 5. If the final grade is
- Less than 3.5, the student will get a failing grade.
- Between 3.5 and 4,8, the student will be able eligible for re-evaluation.
- Students will obtain a Not assessed course grade unless the have submitted more than 30% of the assessment items.
1.2 Re-evaluation criteria
Students who get a final grade between 3.5 and 4,8 and who have carried out 2/3 of the tassessable activities mentioned above will be eligible for re-evaluation of the course on the date set by the Faculty. The activity Delivery of homework is not re-evaluable. If the re-evaluation test is passed, the final grade for the subject will be 5, regardless of the grades obtained before. Students who have passed the course will not be allowed to re-evaluate to increase their grade.
1.3 Evaluation criteria
In order to pass the exam, mastery of the normative is considered essential; therefore, when evaluating the activities mentioned above, spelling errors, incorrect use of punctuation, lexical errors and morphosyntactic errors will be penalized.
1.4 Programming and review procedure for evaluable evidence
The programming of evaluable activities cannot be modified. Erasmus students requesting changes to the schedule of assessable activities must submit a document from their home university to the professor justifying the request for said change.
After the publication of the gradingof the evaluable activities mentioned above, the teacher will inform the students through Moodle of the day and time for the review of such activities.
1.5 Misconduct in assessment activities
In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded to an assessment activity, the student will be given a zero for this activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. Evaluation activities in which there have been irregularities are not recoverable. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities of the same subject, the student will be given a zero as the final grade for this subject.
This subject entirely prohibits the use of AI technologies in all of its activities. Any submitted work that contains content generated using AI will be considered academic dishonesty; the corresponding grade will be awarded a zero, without the possibility of reassessment. In cases of greater infringement, more serious action may be taken.
2. Single assessment
|
Assessment activities |
Weight |
|
Test about Semantics |
45% |
|
Test about Pragmatics |
45% |
|
Delivery of homework |
10% |
2.1 Re-evaluation criteria
Students who get a final grade between 3.5 and 5 and who have carried out the three assessable activities mentioned above will be eligible for re-evaluation of the course on the date set by the Faculty. The activity Delivery of homework is not re-evaluable. If the re-evaluation test is passed, the final grade for the subject will be 5, regardless of the grades obtained before. Students who have passed the course will not be allowed to re-evaluate to increase their grade.
Everything established in points 1.1, 1.3, 1.4 and 1.5 of the previous section is also applicable to the single assessment. The date for the single evaluation will coincide with the date ofthe Test of Pragmatics of the continuous assessment. The teacher willcommunicate to the student the date for the single evaluation through Moodle at the beginning of the course.
Bibliography
Escandell, Mª. Victoria (1996): Introducción a la pragmática. Barcelona: Ariel.
Escandell, Mª. Victoria (2004): Fundamentos de semántica composicional. Barcelona: Ariel.
Portolés, José (2004): Pragmática para hispanistas. Madrid: Síntesis.
Software
There are no requirements.
Groups and Languages
Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (PAUL) Classroom practices | 1 | Spanish | second semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 1 | Spanish | second semester | morning-mixed |