In the eighteenth century and before, gesture was considered from the point of view of how it should be used in oratory, as a part of the art of engaging in persuasive discourse. This contrasts with the interest pursued in modern gesture studies where, for the most part, the hand movements that people make when they speak have been studied as representations of the substantive or propositional content of the utterance, seen as providing clues about the mental or cognitive processes governing speaking. Speaking is also a form of social action, however, and gestures play an important role in this. An historical perspective on the study of gesture from a pragmatic point of view is provided, followed by a summary of the main features of the pragmatic functioning of gesture.

中文翻译：

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手势的语用功能

在 18 世纪及之前，手势是从如何在演讲中使用的角度来考虑的，作为参与说服性话语的艺术的一部分。这与现代手势研究所追求的兴趣形成对比，在现代手势研究中，在大多数情况下，人们在说话时所做的手部动作已被研究为话语的实质性或命题内容的表示，被视为提供有关心理或认知的线索。控制说话的过程。然而，说话也是一种社会行为，手势在其中起着重要作用。提供了从语用角度研究手势的历史视角，然后总结了手势语用功能的主要特征。