Interactivization in Recent Lexical Semantic Changes under the Contextual Collapse Theory
This thesis investigates novel lexical semantic changes within the realm of Chinese internet language,using a usage-based,interactional linguistics approach.By analyzing the usage patterns of 109 popular internet buzzwords on Sina Weibo from 2012 to 2022,it explores the paths of novel semantic extension and lexical category shift.Furthermore,this paper probes into the potential motivations of novel lexical changes,in terms of social network and contextual collapse theory.The findings show the prevailing trend of interactivization underlying the observed lexical semantic changes,which are evidenced in both semantic and grammatical dimensions.Semantically,the novel meanings increasingly converge towards categories related to social communication.Grammatically,lexical category shifts are more active and tend to be unidirectional.This trend is closely related to the intensive interactive social demands and the highly collapsed new media contexts.
novel lexical itemsinteractivilizationcontextual collapsenew mediainternet language