Deixis and Reference

Deixis (from the Greek word for "pointing" or "showing") is one of the most important concepts in pragmatics. Deictic expressions are words and phrases whose meaning depends entirely on the context of utterance — specifically, on who is speaking, where they are, and when they are speaking. Without knowledge of this context, deictic expressions are meaningless or ambiguous.

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What Is Deixis?

Consider the sentence: "I will meet you here tomorrow."

This sentence cannot be fully understood without knowing:

• Who is speaking ("I") and who is being addressed ("you")
• Where the speaker is ("here")
• When the sentence is being uttered ("tomorrow" — tomorrow relative to when?)

The words "I," "you," "here," and "tomorrow" are all deictic expressions — they "point to" aspects of the context and can only be interpreted relative to that context.

Key Definition: Deixis — the phenomenon in which certain expressions derive their meaning from the context of utterance, "pointing to" the participants, location, or time of the speech event. Deictic expressions include pronouns, demonstratives, temporal adverbs, and certain verbs.

The linguist Charles Fillmore (1966, 1971) and Stephen Levinson (1983, Pragmatics) provided influential accounts of deixis, identifying several distinct categories.

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Person Deixis

Person deixis concerns the encoding of the roles of participants in the speech event. The basic distinction is between:

• First person — the speaker or writer ("I," "me," "my," "mine," "we," "us," "our")
• Second person — the addressee ("you," "your," "yours")
• Third person — other people or things being referred to ("he," "she," "it," "they," "him," "her," "them")

Analytical Significance of Person Deixis

Person deixis is analytically significant because the choice of pronoun encodes important information about identity, relationships, and power:

• First person singular ("I") — positions the speaker as an individual; creates a personal, subjective voice. Common in personal writing, opinion pieces, and autobiography.
• First person plural ("we") — can be inclusive (including the addressee: "we all need to work together") or exclusive (excluding the addressee: "we in the government have decided"). The inclusive "we" creates solidarity and shared identity; the exclusive "we" can create distance or assert group authority.
• Second person ("you") — directly addresses the reader/listener, creating engagement and a sense of personal relevance. The generic "you" ("you know what it's like") invites the addressee to identify with a shared experience.
• Third person — creates distance; refers to people as objects of discussion rather than participants. Can be used to exclude or objectify.

In political discourse, the strategic use of "we" is particularly significant. When a politician says "we must act now," the ambiguity of "we" (the government? the party? the nation? humanity?) is often deliberately exploited.

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Place (Spatial) Deixis

Place deixis (or spatial deixis) concerns the encoding of spatial locations relative to the speaker's position at the time of utterance.

Key spatial deictics include:

Proximal (near speaker)	Distal (far from speaker)
"here"	"there"
"this"	"that"
"these"	"those"
"come"	"go"
"bring"	"take"

The distinction between proximal and distal is fundamental. Proximal deictics indicate closeness to the speaker; distal deictics indicate distance.

Analytical Significance

Spatial deixis can be used to create psychological as well as physical proximity or distance:

• "This country" (proximal — the speaker positions themselves within the country, creating solidarity)
• "That country" (distal — the speaker positions themselves outside, creating distance)
• Advertising frequently uses proximal deictics to create immediacy and personal connection: "This is the phone you've been waiting for."

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Time (Temporal) Deixis

Time deixis concerns the encoding of time relative to the moment of utterance.

Key temporal deictics include:

Deictic Expression	Meaning
"now"	at the time of speaking
"then"	at a time other than the time of speaking
"today"	the day of speaking
"yesterday"	the day before the day of speaking
"tomorrow"	the day after the day of speaking
"last week/month/year"	the week/month/year before the time of speaking
"next week/month/year"	the week/month/year after the time of speaking
"ago"	a specified time before the time of speaking

Tense is also a form of time deixis. The past tense locates events before the time of speaking; the present tense locates events at the time of speaking; and modal and future constructions locate events after the time of speaking.

Analytical Significance

Temporal deixis is important in narrative analysis. A shift from past tense to historic present ("So I walk into the room and there he is...") brings events closer to the moment of telling, creating vividness and immediacy. In journalism, the use of present tense in headlines ("Prime Minister resigns") creates urgency.

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Social Deixis