Deanya Lattimore's List: commonplace studies

`And then I'm really like . . .': `preliminary' self-quotations in adolescent talk
Joyce Lamerichs

VU UNIVERSITY AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, j.lamerichs@let.vu.nl

Hedwig F.M. Te Molder

WAGENINGEN UNIVERSITY, THE NETHERLANDS

This article explores the discursive uses of a self-quotation in adolescent talk. The self-quotation uses the quotative marker be + like to convey or project bold statements as part of a larger narrative. We will demonstrate how the preface leading up to the self-quotation is designed as hard to counter, and instructs the hearer how to understand what comes next. The self-quotation, on the other hand, constitutes the assessment as a `mere characterization' that provides the speaker with a number of opportunities for testing the proposed view. Speakers are thus able to bolster potentially controversial views against refutation while also giving them a preliminary status. These features make for an interesting conversational resource that enables speakers and recipients to engage in a collaborative process of putting potentially bold statements to the test.

Key Words: adolescent talk • direct reported speech • discursive psychology • self-quotations

Discourse Studies, Vol. 11, No. 4, 401-419 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1461445609105216