Particules métadiscursives et autres modes langagières: des cas de changement linguistique

Abstract

The present article focuses on the use of metadiscursive expressions and discourse particles that are produced in great numbers by Montreal speakers in different time periods and that have generally been regarded as language ticks. Elements of the first group make explicit the conscious state of speakers with respect to their language production; elements of the second group illustrate the fleeting and unstable character of language modes. In analyzing the elements of both groups, we cover the two aspects of the problem before us: addressing the question of language awareness and showing the evolution of discourse particles which are an indication of this awareness. The data on which our observations are made are taken from three sociolinguistic corpora created successively over time with the same Montreal francophone speakers: the Sankoff-Cedergen corpus (1971), the 1984 Montreal corpus and the Montreal 1995 corpus. Our analysis reveals that while both the frequency and the choice of particles vary with time, all of the speakers produce them, and that their production increases with age, regardless of sex or socioprofessional status.