1887
Volume 12, Issue 2
  • ISSN 1877-7031
  • E-ISSN: 1877-8798
USD
Buy:$35.00 + Taxes

Abstract

Abstract

Indefinite subjects in Mandarin Chinese are dis-preferred or restricted according to previous studies although they do exist in natural data. In this study we examine two issues: when they are used and why they are used. The first issue is best answered by looking at the information status of indefinite subjects. We adopt the framework of givenness and newness developed by Prince (1992) and revised by Birner’s (20042006). We find that although indefinite subjects are new most of the time, most of them also carry some old information; the given-before-new principle is satisfied. For the second issue, we examine topic continuity of indefinite subjects in discourse. We find that they perform a discourse function different from that of the post-verbal NPs in existential sentences. Most of the time their referents are non-persistent, and they are not discourse topics, unlike post-verbal NPs in existential sentences.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1075/cld.20024.nie
2021-02-19
2025-02-15
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Aoun, Joseph E., Elabbas Benmamoun & Lina Choueiri
    2010The Syntax of Arabic. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Birner, Betty J.
    1996The Discourse Function of Inversion in English. New York: Garland.
    [Google Scholar]
  3. 2004 Discourse Functions at the Periphery: Noncanonical Word Order in English. ZAS Papers in Linguistics35. 41–62. 10.21248/zaspil.35.2004.221
    https://doi.org/10.21248/zaspil.35.2004.221 [Google Scholar]
  4. 2006 Inferential Relations and Noncanonical Word Order. InBetty J. Birner & Gregory L. Ward (ed.), Drawing the Boundaries of Meaning: Neo-Gricean Studies in Pragmatics and Semantics in Honor of Laurence R. Horn, 31–51. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/slcs.80.04bir
    https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.80.04bir [Google Scholar]
  5. Birner, Betty J. & Gregory L. Ward
    1996 A Crosslinguistic Study of Postposing in Discourse. Language and Speech39(2–3). 113–142. 10.1177/002383099603900302
    https://doi.org/10.1177/002383099603900302 [Google Scholar]
  6. 1998Information Status and Noncanonical Word Order in English (Vol.40). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/slcs.40
    https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.40 [Google Scholar]
  7. Chao, Yuen Ren
    1968A Grammar of Spoken Chinese. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Chafe, Wallace
    1976 Givenness, Contrastiveness, Definiteness, Subjects, Topics, and Point of View. InCharles N. Li (ed.), Subject and Topic, 25–55. New York: Academic Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Clark, Herbert H. & Eve V. Clark
    1977Psychology and Language: An Introduction to Psycholinguistics. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Clark, Herbert H. & Susan E. Haviland
    1977 Comprehension and the Given-new Contract. InRoy O. Freedle (ed.), Discourse Production and Comprehension (Advances in Research and Theory 1), 1–40. Norwood, New Jersey: Ablex Publishing Corporation.
    [Google Scholar]
  11. Chen, Ping
    2004 Identifiability and Definiteness in Chinese. Linguistics, 1129–1184.
    [Google Scholar]
  12. Delacruz, Enrique B.
    1976 Factives and Proposition Level Constructions in Montague Grammar. InBarbara Partee (ed.), Montague Grammar, 177–199. New York: Academic Press. 10.1016/B978‑0‑12‑545850‑4.50012‑1
    https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-545850-4.50012-1 [Google Scholar]
  13. Fan, Jiyan
    1985 Wuding NP zhuyu ju [Sentences with indefinite NP subjects]. Zhongguo Yuwen5. 321–328.
    [Google Scholar]
  14. Fang, Mei
    2019 On the Discourse Function of the So-called ‘Indefinite Subject Sentence’. Shijie Hanyu Jiaoxue33. 189–200.
    [Google Scholar]
  15. Fox, Andrew
    1983 Topic Continuity in Biblical Hebrew Narrative. InTalmy Givón (ed.), Topic Continuity in Discourse: A Quantitative Cross-language Study, 215–254. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. 10.1075/tsl.3.05fox
    https://doi.org/10.1075/tsl.3.05fox [Google Scholar]
  16. Givón, Talmy
    1983Topic Continuity in Discourse. John Benjamins Publishing Company. 10.1075/tsl.3
    https://doi.org/10.1075/tsl.3 [Google Scholar]
  17. 1994 The Pragmatics of De-transitive Voice: Functional and Typological Aspects of Inversion. InTalmy Givón (ed.), Voice and Inversion, 3–44. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/tsl.28.03giv
    https://doi.org/10.1075/tsl.28.03giv [Google Scholar]
  18. 2017The Story of Zero. John Benjamins Publishing Company. 10.1075/z.204
    https://doi.org/10.1075/z.204 [Google Scholar]
  19. Gundel, Jeanette K.
    1988 Universals of Topic-comment Structure. Studies in Syntactic Typology17(1). 209–239. 10.1075/tsl.17.16gun
    https://doi.org/10.1075/tsl.17.16gun [Google Scholar]
  20. Halliday, Michael A.
    1967 Notes on Transitivity and Theme in English: Part 2. Journal of Linguistics3(2). 199–244. 10.1017/S0022226700016613
    https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022226700016613 [Google Scholar]
  21. Herring, Susan C. & John C. Paolillo
    1995 Focus Positions in SOV Languages, InPamela Downing & Michael Noonan (eds.), Word Order in Discourse, 163–198. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. 10.1075/tsl.30.08her
    https://doi.org/10.1075/tsl.30.08her [Google Scholar]
  22. Hetzron, Robert
    1971 Presentative Function and Presentative Movement. Studies in African Linguistics2. 79–105
    [Google Scholar]
  23. 1975 The Presentative Movement or Why the Ideal Word Order is VSOP. InCharles N. Li (ed.), Word Order and Word Order Change, 346–388. Austin & London: University of Texas Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  24. Keenan, Edward. L.
    1976 Towards a Universal Definition of ‘Subject’. InCharles N. Li (ed.), Subject and Topic, 303–333. New York: Academic Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  25. Kroeger, Paul
    1993Phrase Structure and Grammatical Relations in Tagalog. Stanford: CSLI Publications.
    [Google Scholar]
  26. Kuno, Susumu
    1972 Functional Sentence Perspective: A Case Study from Japanese and English. Linguistic inquiry3(3). 269–320.
    [Google Scholar]
  27. Lee, Thomas H.
    1986Studies on Quantification in Chinese. Los Angeles, CA: University of California Dissertation.
    [Google Scholar]
  28. Li, Charles N. & Sandra A. Thompson
    1975 The Semantic Function of Word Order: A Case Study in Mandarin. InCharles N. Li (ed.), Word Order and Word Order Change, 163–195. Austin: University of Texas Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  29. 1976 Subject and Topic: A New Typology of Language. InCharles N. Li (ed.), Subject and Topic, 459–489, New York: Academic Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  30. Light, Timothy
    1979 Word Order and Word Order Change in Mandarin Chinese. Journal of Chinese Linguistics7(2). 149–180
    [Google Scholar]
  31. Liu, Anchun & Bojian Zhang
    2004 Pianzhang zhong de wuding mingci zhuyuju ji xiangguan jushi [Sentences with indefinite subjects and related constructions in discourse]. Journal of Chinese Language Computing14. 97–105.
    [Google Scholar]
  32. Lu, Shuo & Haihua Pan
    2009 Hanyu wuding zhuyu de yuyi yunzhun fenxi [The semantic licensing conditions of indefinite subjects in Mandarin Chinese]. Studies of the Chinese Language6. 528–537.
    [Google Scholar]
  33. Mikkelsen, Line
    2005Copular Clauses: Specification, Predication and Equation, vol.85. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. 10.1075/la.85
    https://doi.org/10.1075/la.85 [Google Scholar]
  34. Prince, Ellen F.
    1981 Towards a Taxonomy of Given-new Information. InPeter Cole (ed.), Radical Pragmatics, 223–256. New York: Academic Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  35. 1992 The ZPG letter: Subjects, Definiteness, and Information-status. InSandra Thompson & William Mann (ed.), Discourse Description: Diverse Analyses of a Fund Raising Text, 295–325. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 10.1075/pbns.16.12pri
    https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.16.12pri [Google Scholar]
  36. Svenonius, Peter
    2002 Subject Positions and the Placement of Adverbials. InPeter Svenonius (ed.), Subjects, Expletives and the EPP, 201–242. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  37. Sun, Chaofen & Talmy Givón
    1985 On the So-called SOV Word Order in Mandarin Chinese: A Quantified Text Study and its Implications. Language, 329–351. 10.2307/414148
    https://doi.org/10.2307/414148 [Google Scholar]
  38. Tao, Hongyin & Bojiang Zhang
    2000 Wuding baziju zai jin xiandai hanyu zhong de diwei wenti ji qi lilun yiyi [The Status of Indefinite Ba-Constructions in Modern and Contemporary Chinese and Its Implications]. Studies of the Chinese Language5. 433–446.
    [Google Scholar]
  39. Tsai, Wei-tien D.
    1996 Subject Specificity, Raising Modals and Extended Mapping Hypothesis. InSymposium on the Referential Properties of Noun Phrases, City University of Hong Kong.
    [Google Scholar]
  40. Tsai, Wei-Tien D.
    2001 On Subject Specificity and Theory of Syntax-Semantics Interface. Journal of East Asian Linguistics10(2). 129–168. 10.1023/A:1008321327978
    https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008321327978 [Google Scholar]
  41. Ward, Gregory L. & Ellen F. Prince
    1991 On the Topicalization of Indefinite NPs. Journal of Pragmatics15. 167–178. 10.1016/0378‑2166(91)90079‑D
    https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-2166(91)90079-D [Google Scholar]
  42. Wei, Hong & Zexiang Chu
    2007 “Youding juhou” yu xianshixing de wuding NP zhuyuju [On “postposition of definite subject” and the realistic sentence with indefinite NP as subject]. Shijie Hanyu Jiaoxue3. 38–51.
    [Google Scholar]
  43. Xu, Liejiong
    1997 Limitation on Subjecthood of Numerically Quantified Noun Phrases: A Pragmatic Approach. InLiejiong Xu (ed.), The Referential Properties of Chinese Noun Phrases, 25–44. Paris: Ecoledes Hautes Etudesen Sciences Sociales.
    [Google Scholar]
  44. Xue, Nianwen, Zixin Jiang, Xiuhong Zhong, Martha Palmer, Fei Xia, Fu-Dong Chiou & Meiyu Chang
    2010Chinese Treebank 7.0 LDC2010T07. Web Download. Philadelphia: Linguistic Data Consortium.
    [Google Scholar]
  45. Zhu, Dexi
    1982 Yufa jiangyi [Lectures on Chinese grammar]. Beijing: Shangwu yinshuguan.
/content/journals/10.1075/cld.20024.nie
Loading
/content/journals/10.1075/cld.20024.nie
Loading

Data & Media loading...

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error