Results per function in discourse

The results of the distribution of the data in relation with the parameter of the function of conditionals in discourse are shown in Table 5.9 and Figure 5.21 below. The findings confirm that the most common function of conditionals is that of hypothesizing, accounting for 75.31% of all uses.

Function Number of conditionals Normalised Figures

Known Fact 229 188.48

Hypothesizing 2824 2324.27

Scope-Restricting 193 157.85

Method 0 0

Rhetorical 12 9.88

Concessive 197 162.14

Directive 21 17.28

Politeness 29 23.87

Relevance 161 132.51

Metalinguistic 17 13.99

Non-committal 52 42.80

Table 5.9: Use of conditionals per function in discourse.

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000

England Scotland Ireland North

America Others Whole Corpus If Unless Total Inversion Total Peripheral

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Figure 5.21: Use of conditionals per function in discourse.

The next most frequent function is that of known fact conditionals, which account for 6.13% of all the cases. These include not only conditionals accounting for mathematical operations and equalities, such as (4), but also other kinds of universally acknowledged relations of premises, such as (5), which presents a geometric property; (6), which explains the relations between physical properties of objects participating in a chemical reaction; and (7), regarding the properties of biological bodies.

(4) Again, if 4 Minutes, 59 Seconds, 18 Thirds, the mean Motion for one Day, which ſtands againſt the firſt of January, be doubled, the Sum 9 Minutes, 58 Seconds, 36 Thirds, or 9 Minutes, 59 Seconds, will be the mean Motion for two Days [9 (1679)]

(5) That any Body whatever, which is cut with innumerable Plains, interſeƈting each other in one common Line or Axis, if all the Seƈtions produc'd in the Surface of it, be circular, it cannot be other than Spherical. [2 (266)]

(6) If we bring carbon to a high temperature in contact with oxygen, it burns, and the compound carbonic-acid gas is the result; [113 (3332)]

(7) Thus, as a rule, men and animals of the class of mammalia die if the internal temperature of their bodies reaches 111º, the heat natural to birds; [113 (2337)]

After that, the next most frequent conditionals are concessive ones, which account for 5.27% of the uses. Concessive conditionals include two subtypes. The first one, exemplified in (8), is characterised by the use of the protasis to state an apparent impediment for the fulfilment of the apodosis, under which it holds anyway. The second subtype (9) usually introduces a single phrase, and is used to

229; 6%

2824; 76%

193; 5%

0; 0% 12; 0%

197; 5%

21; 1%

29; 1%

161; 4%

17; 1%

52; 1%

Known Fact Hypothesizing Scope-Restricting Method Rhetorical Concessive Directive Politeness Relevance Metalinguistic Non-committal

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express that the author is conscious that the idea in the protasis could be true, but, nevertheless, decides not to affirm it because the apodosis is definitely true: in short, it allows the author to introduce a possible idea without affirming it.

(8) It may be that some natural peculiarity does not appear till late in life, and yet may justly deserve to be considered natural, for if it is decidedly exceptional in its character its origin could hardly be ascribed to the effects of nurture. [79 (213)]

(9) Our actions, if not determined, are at least influenced by motives; and the motive is a prior link in the chain, and a condition of the action. [115 (1675)]

Scope restricting conditionals also show an important proportion of use, accounting for 5.17% of the cases. These are conditionals that delimit the scope of a concept or group, stating its definition or limits. Some of their uses are shown in examples (10-12).

(10) If liberty be defin'd, A power to paſs different judgments at the ſame inſtant of time upon the ſame individual propoſitions that are not evident […] it will follow, that Men will be ſo far irrational, and by conſequence imperfeƈt agents, as they have that freedom of judgment. [85 (2559)]

(11) If, however, we define a siderial day to be the time of the earth's rotation, although it is not equal precisely to the interval between the transits of a star, yet it is a quantity which may be calculated from that interval, and therefore available as a unit of time. [28 (3583)]

(12) This is equally true if consciousness is taken to be, as it might perhaps be maintained that Sir William Hamilton in this connection intends it to be, a general name for our acts of intuitive judgment. [117 (958)]

The next most frequent function, accounting for 4.31% of the uses, is that of relevance conditionals, the most common type of speech act conditionals. These conditionals, exemplified in (13) and (14) below, are used to explain the circumstances under which the statement of the apodosis is relevant.

This is, following the Gricean interpretation of Speech Act conditionals explained in Chapter 2, if the reader does not think the condition of the protasis is fulfilled, they would not need to be concerned with the content of the apodosis.

(13) If any of my readers should think, that, in this section, I make too wide, and too abrupt a transition from the question concerning the origin of our knowledge, to that which relates to the moral constitution of human nature, I must beg leave to remind them that, in doing so, I

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am only following [Mr] Locke's arrangement in his elaborate argument against innate ideas.

[103 (6037)]

(14) If any one deny a vacuum, let him look into the mind of an unreflecting person, and he will find one; not indeed exactly what he may be looking for, but figuratively so; [20 (9741)]

All the other types of conditionals occur less than 2% of the time. Non-committal conditionals (examples (15) and (16) below) have been found in 1.39% of the cases, whilst politeness (17) account for 0.78%. The former are used by authors to distance themselves from claims, often by other authors, which are presented and whose consequences are explained, but which are not asserted. The latter introduce expressions of politeness from the author to the reader, without introducing any new content.

(15) The admixture of the relative element not only does not take away the absolute character of the remainder, but does not even (if our author is right) prevent us from recognising it. [110 (8606)]

(16) for if we may believe Antigonus the Caryſtian, quoted by Diogenes Laertius, his life correſponded to his doƈtrine. [94 (4221)]

(17) partly from thoſe ſhe in a manner appropriates to herſelf, irony, hyperbolé, alluſion, parody, and (if the reader will pardon my deſcending ſo low) paronomaſia, [97 (8350)]

Directive conditionals (18) account for 0.56% of the uses, metalinguistic conditionals (19) account for 0.46%; and rhetorical conditionals, exemplified in (20), for only 0.32%. Directive conditionals are used to present an action the author desires the reader to comply with, and are also used metaphorically as metadiscursive guidance so that the audience follows the explanations of the author. Metalinguistic conditionals are used by authors to make comments on the accuracy or felicity of the selection of words used to encode a point. Rhetorical conditionals are constructions which take the form of a conditional although they do not express a conditional relationship, but, rather, assert a point by means of the blatant truth or falsehood of one of its parts.

(18) If we proceed, and take a ſurvey of thoſe more noble animals of the winged race, we ſhall alſo obſerve… [98 (8600)]

(19) The features constituting the whole process, including the associations of the original contents, thus drawn out under four heads, which describe in general terms its essential elements as an act of choice, are in actual experience "telescoped," if I may use the word, into one another; [121 (7965)]

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