The Prosodic Syntax of Chinese

Erscheinungsjahr 2002
ISBN: 978-3-89586-369-1
Verlag: LINCOM

Buch, Englisch, Band 44, 152 Seiten, Format (B × H): 220 mm x 150 mm

Reihe: LINCOM Studies in Asian Linguistics

In linguistics, it has been commonly assumed that syntax can exert influence on prosody, but the opposite direction, prosody influences syntax, is much less widely recognized. The present manuscript argues for a bidirectional interaction between prosody and syntax: Syntax governs prosody and prosody also constrains syntax, based on data from Chinese. For example, a classical problem in Chinese syntax is this: only one constituent is, in general, allowed after the main verb. However, if the object is a destressed element (a pronoun, for example), two constituents can legitimately occur after the verb. This pattern is explained by proposing a prosodic feature assignment on elementary trees in the Tree Adjoining Grammar notation. The manuscript is the first work that a system of prosodically constrained syntax is proposed in the literature, and it will create a sub-field of linguistics in the study of human languages.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Feng, Shengli

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Literaturwissenschaft Literaturen sonstiger Sprachräume Ost- & Südostasiatische Literatur
• Geisteswissenschaften Sprachwissenschaft Einzelne Sprachen & Sprachfamilien

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Chapter 1. Phrase Structure
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Problems of Phrase Structure in Chinese
1.2.1 Huang's Account
1.2.2 Li's Account
1.2.3 Huang's Revised Theory
1.3 The Prosodic Hypothesis
1.4 Accent, Stress and Focus
1.4.1 Accent and Stress
1.4.2 Stress and Focus

Chapter 2. Prosodic Syntax
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Phrasal Prosody in Mandarin Chinese
2.2.1. Chao's Last-Being-Strongest Generalization
2.2.2. Tang's From-Light-to-Heavy Principle
2.2.3. The Nuclear Stress Rule in Chinese
2.3 Theoretical Framework
2.3.1. TAG Formalism
2.3.2. Unification-Based TAG ----- Top and Bottom Feature Structures
2.3.3. Prosodic Feature Structures
2.3.3.1. VP Adjunction
2.3.3.2. NP Adjunction
2.3.3.3. Simple Sentences
2.4 Last-VP Syntax in Mandarin Chinese
2.4.1. Overview
2.4.2. The Problem of D/F Adjuncts
2.4.3. Prosodic Explanation
2.4.3.1. [V-NP-D/FP]
2.4.3.2. Structure of [V Pronoun D/FP]
2.4.3.3. [V __ D/FP]
2.4.3.4. Intransitive V with D/FP
2.5 The ba-Construction
2.5.1. Bare Verb Effect
2.5.2. Previous Accounts
2.5.2.1. Chao's Anticlimax
2.5.2.2. Liu's Perfectivity
2.5.3. A Prosodic Account
2.5.3.1 Basic Structure
2.5.3.2 Questions Regarding the Prosodic Hypothesis
2.5.3.3 A Branching V' Node
2.5.3.4 [Ba-NP V-XP] Structures
2.5.3.5 [BaP Adv V] Structures
2.5.3.6 Syllabic Branching Node V
2.5.3.7 The Acceptability of Disyllabic Verbs
2.5.3.8 Evidence for Weak and Strong Disyllabic Forms
2.5.3.9 An Analysis for Unacceptable Disyllabic Forms
2.5.3.10 [Ba-NP Zemeyang]

Chapter 3. Prosodic Word
3.1. Introduction
3.2. Word-stress in Mandarin Chinese
3.2.1. The Controversy over Compound Stress
3.2.2. The Underlying Pattern of Compound Stress
3.2.3. Tone Quality
3.2.4. Weakening
3.2.5. Summary
3.3. The Phrasal Origin of Chinese Compounds
3.4. The Lexicalized TAG System
3.4.1. An Introduction to Lexicalized TAG
3.4.2. Unified Stress Assignment on Elementary Trees
3.4.3. The Idiomatic Character of Chinese Compounds
3.4.4. Problems with Our Syntactic Account
3.5. Prosodic Morphology and Word Formation in Chinese
3.5.1. An Introduction to Prosodic Morphology
3.5.2. The Foot Formation Rule
3.5.3. Monosyllabicity
3.5.4. The Trisyllabic Foot -- the Mending Device
3.6. Prosodic Words and Compounding
3.6.1. The Constraint [M]=[s] and ALIGN: [ ]Compound=[ ]PrWd
3.6.2. The Derivation of PrWd (Compounding)
3.6.3. Remaining Problems
3.7. Implications and Consequences
3.7.1. The Chinese Lexicon and Dictionary
3.7.2. Interaction between the Monosyllabic
Axiom and the Foot Formation Rule

Über Autor(innen)

Shengli Feng, University of Kansas