(Inter)subjectification and unidirectionality

In this paper the importance of distinguishing synchronic (inter)subjectivity and diachronic (inter)subjectification is stressed. Questions are posed concerning the robustness of hypotheses about matches between semantic function and syntactic position at the left or right periphery of the clause in Japanese, the extent to which subtypes of (inter)subjective function constrain the direction of shift over time, and the optimal unit of analysis (sentence, clause, or intonation unit).