Pragmatics and grammar of "si es que". Beyond reply and justification

Abstract

In this paper, we describe a Spanish linguistic structure preceded by a combination of two elements: si and es que. The analysis is undertaken through a pragmagrammatical approach. These elements, the linker si and the intensification operator es que, act frequently together and display some specific uses depending on the context. Analyzing real samples, we will enumerate some of the discursive values which this combination acquires. We consider that these discursive values depend on three dimensions which characterize the macro-structure of the text: information, modality and argumentation. Additionally, it is necessary to see which internal components belong to the utterances preceded by si es que and how they are related to the context. In this way, it might be easier to identify the specific features of these utterances and the differences with other linguistic structures.