The aim of this volume is to investigate how the aesthetics of the medium understood as the specific features of various types of texts (literary/cultural/scientific texts, TV series, political speeches) influence the pragmatic analysis of meaning in context. Context has been so far analysed basically according to two perspectives: a) as given and presumptive, prior to pragmatic actions, in line with the Anglo-American approach inspired by Austin and Grice; and b) as constructed through pragmatic actions, according to what may be defined as the sociological turn, more frequently characterizing European ‘continental’ studies.
In this issue of Anglistica AION, we gather new and different insights to context, starting from considering the increasing importance of pragmatic theories, stylistics and statistical studies in the analysis of literary texts, and the questions they pose: Can all texts be analysed pragmatically? Does the genre of a given text with its constraints and/or possibilities force the use of a specific pragmatic theory for its (contextual) analysis? How does the text’s aesthetics influence the pragmatic analysis and the results the analyst is left with? Should the temporal-historical aspect be taken into account when choosing a pragmatic theory in the analysis of texts? Does aesthetics play a role in pragmatically defining what is created and what is given in relation to utterance and context?