Pragmatic scales and Korean focus particle –na

Korean-na has a variety of uses. Confining its scope to scalar uses of the particle, the study seeks to explicate its semantic content. At its core, the particle is understood to convey the idea that the propositional content of the immediate clause is ranked low on a pragmatic scale. To elucidate the nature of the pragmatic scale, diverse discourse examples are examined. It is shown that the pragmatic scale evoked by the particle differs depending on the illocutionary act the speaker utters the sentence to perform. Specifically, the study identifies three distinct scales along the dimensions of respectability, seriousness, and optionality. When the speaker uses the sentence containing the particle to make a statement, the particle evokes a pragmatic scale along the dimension of respectability. When the speaker performs an illocutionary act of suggesting, planning, or contemplating, a seriousness scale is evoked. Uttering a sentence for the purpose of ordering, advising, or requesting prompts an optionality scale.