The Creation of Meaning: A Festschrift in Honour of Randy J. LaPolla 意义创造论——罗仁地先生七秩寿庆文集

The Creation of Meaning is a profound collection of 16 essays that delves into the intricate relationship between language, cognition, and communication. Central to the book is Professor Randy J. LaPolla's " Creation of Meaning Theory," which asserts that language is a dynamic, active process integral to communication and overall human behavior. He argues that humans fundamentally create meaning through abductive inference within interpretive contexts, a process both subjective and incomplete yet vital for survival. He views communication as a gestalt of indication and inference, where language serves as a tool to constrain reasoning, not the sole means. He champions an integrationist, interdisciplinary, and empirical approach, moving beyond rigid structuralist frameworks. The collection further presents diverse linguistic research, including the denominationalization of proper nouns in Chinese, the role of information focus in translation, abductive inference in Mandarin interactions, and the mechanisms of irregular triple negation. Other essays delve into typological features of various Chinese and Tibeto-Burman dialects, examining topics from sound correspondence to honorific pronouns and complex grammatical structures. Ultimately, "The Creation of Meaning" offers a rich, multi-faceted exploration of how meaning is dynamically constructed, embodying Professor Randy J. LaPolla's influential and holistic linguistic vision.