The Semantic Basis Of Argument Structure
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The Semantic Basis of Argument Structure
Author: Stephen Wechsler
language: en
Publisher: Center for the Study of Language and Information Publications
Release Date: 1995-06-30
A central problem on the syntax-semantics interface is the mapping between semantic roles and syntactic arguments, usually termed 'linking'. This book presents a clear and concise treatment of linking which departs significantly from models employing a problematical intermediate level where roles are classified into thematic role types such as 'agent' and 'goal'. Instead, the connection between a verb's meaning and its argument structure is shown to be quite direct. This direct connection appeals to certain fundamental aspects of verb meaning, while more specific semantic relations such as 'goal' are relevant to linking only when such relations are associated with the meanings of prepositions and similar forms. As a result, the theory is firmly grounded in the semantic content of verbs and prepositions.
Unaccusativity
Besides providing extensive support for David Perlmutter's hypothesis that unaccusativity is syntactically represented but semantically determined, this monograph contributes significantly to the development of a theory of lexical semantic representation and to the elucidation of the mapping from lexical semantics to syntax. Unaccusativity is an extended investigation into a set of linguistic phenomena that have received much attention over the last fifteen years. Besides providing extensive support for David Perlmutter's hypothesis that unaccusativity is syntactically represented but semantically determined, this monograph contributes significantly to the development of a theory of lexical semantic representation and to the elucidation of the mapping from lexical semantics to syntax. Perlmutter's Unaccusative Hypothesis proposes that there are two classes of intransitive verbs - unergatives and unaccusatives - each associated with a distinct syntactic configuration. Unaccusativity begins by isolating the semantic factors that determine whether a verb will be unaccusative or unergative through a careful examination of the behavior of intransitive verbs from a range of semantic classes in diverse syntactic constructions. Notable are the extensive discussions of verbs of motion, verbs of emission, and various types of verbs of change of state. The authors then introduce rules that determine the syntactic expression of the arguments of the verbs investigated and examine the interactions among them. The proper treatment of verbs that systematically show multiple meanings - and hence variable classification as unaccusative or unergative - is also considered. In the final chapter, the authors argue that the distribution of locative inversion, a purported unaccusative diagnostic, is determined instead by discourse considerations. Linguistic Inquiry Monograph No. 26
Argument Structure in Hindi
Author: Tara Mohanan
language: en
Publisher: Center for the Study of Language (CSLI)
Release Date: 1994
Conception of linguistic organisation involving the factorisation of syntactically relevant information into at least four parallel dimensions of structure.