1 Degree Intensification and Sentential Functions in Chengdu - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Degree Intensification and Sentential Functions in Chengdu Chinese

1Jiajuan Xiong and 2Feng-fan Hsieh 1Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, jiajuanx@gmail.com; 2National Tsing Hua University, siahonghoan@faculty.hss.nthu.edu.tw

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The Diversities of Degree Intensifiers in Chengdu

• In Chengdu Chinese, degree intensifiers vary in the following aspects:
• (i) some require the presence of the particle DE, but some others do not: (1) vs. (2) - (5);
• (ii) some precede the modified AP/VP, while some others follow AP/VP: (2) - (4) vs. (1) and

(5);

• (iii) some require the presence of a sentence final particle (SFP), as shown in (3) - (5), but

some others do not, as in (1) - (2).

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Data presentation

(tɛ-xən; tsɿ; xau)

(1) a. Tsɛ pɚ su iəutɕʻy tɛ xən (o/io)! this CL book interesting DE very SFP/SFP ‘This book is highly interesting.’

• b. Tʻa

ɕixuan kʻan su tɛ xən (o/io)! s/he like read book DE very SFP/SFP ‘S/he likes reading very much.’ (2) a. Tsɛ pɚ su tsɿ/xau iəutɕʻy (o/io)! this CL book very/very interesting SFP/SFP ‘This is book is highly interesting.’

• b. Tʻa

tsɿ/xau ɕixuan kʻan su (o/io)! s/he very/very like read book SFP/SFP ‘S/he likes reading very much.’

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Data presentation

(to…ni;)

(3) a. Tsɛ pɚ su to iəutɕʻy *(ni). this CL book very interestingSFP ‘This book is highly interesting.’

• b. Tʻa to

ɕixuan kʻan su *(ni). s/he very like read book SFP ‘S/he likes reading very much.’

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Data presentation

(tsɿiəu namo … no; xən no)

(4) a. Tsɛ pɚ su tsɿiəu namo iəutɕʻy *(no). this CL book

• nly

so interesting SFP ‘This book is highly interesting.’

• b. Tʻa

tsɿiəu namo ɕixuan kʻan su *(no). s/he

• nly

so like read book SFP ‘S/he likes reading very much.’ (5) a. Tsɛ pɚ su kuei xən *(no). this CL book expensive very SFP ‘This book is too expensive.’

• b. Tʻa

kʻan su kʻan xən *(no). s/he read book read very SFP ‘S/he reads too much (e.g., for a long time at a stretch).’

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The Interactions between intensifiers and SFPs

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Table 1. The features of degree intensifiers in Chengdu Chinese pre-AP/VP intensifiers post-AP/VP intensifiers SFPs [DEGREE + AP/VP] [AP/VP+DEGREE] [AP/VP + de + DEGREE] ni to X X no tsɿiəu namo xən, tʻɚ X ∅/o/io tsɿ, xau X xən

A Sketch of SFPs in Chengdu

• There is a rich repertoire of SFPs in Chengdu Chinese. Zhang, Zhang and Deng (2001:

372) identify 25 sentence final particles.

• Some SFPs are considered as allophones of the same SFP;
• Some SFPs are reported to be multi-functional, depending on contexts.
• Following Tang’s (2015, 2020) cartographic analyses of Cantonese SFPs, we select

several representative SFPs, which are of the focus, modality, interrogation and exclamation categories.

• Delineate a cartographic sketch of Chengdu SFPs (Rizzi 1997; Cinque 1999);
• Determine the syntactic positions of ni and no

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The Cartographical Layout of Chengdu SFPs

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Table 2. Different Types of Chengdu SFPs. FinP FocP CP assurance modality interrogation exclamation epistemic evidential no ni

tɛ tɛma

wa

• , io; no

The SFP ni

• The SFP ni: a focus type SFP
• It brings about a focus reading on the whole proposition.
• It is applicable to propositions anchored in the past, present or future time frame.
• It bears similarity with the (shi) … de propositional assertion construction in Mandarin (Lee

2005; Xiong 2007; Paul and Whitman 2008; Mai 2013).

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The SFP no

• The SFP no:
• interrogative SFP (Zhang, Zhang and Deng 2001)
• imperative SFP (Zhang, Zhang and Deng 2001)
• finite SFP
• exclamatory SFP (a conflation between the finite no and the exclamatory o)
• The analysis is in line with Erlewine’s (2013) distinction between vP-domain SFPs and

CP-domain SFPs as well as Zhang’s (2018) differentiation between sentence final aspect particles (SFAPs) and sentence final particles (SFPs).

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The Interactions between intensifiers and SFPs

(6) a. Tʻakauɕin tɛ xən (*no). s/he happy DE very SFPFIN

‘S/he is very happy.’

• b. Tʻa

kauɕin tɛ xən ni. s/he happy DE very SFPFOC

‘It is the case that s/he is very happy.’

• c. Tʻa

xai kauɕin tɛ xən tɛ. s/he

• ut_of_expectation happy

DE very SFPMOD

‘Out of my expectation, s/he is very happy.’

• d. Tʻa

kauɕin tɛ xən tɛma. s/he happy DE very SFPMOD

‘It is evident that s/he is very happy.’

• e. Tʻa

kauɕin tɛ xən wa? s/he happy DE very SFPINTR

‘Is s/he very happy?’

• f. Tʻa kauɕin

tɛ xən o/io! s/he happy DE very SFPEXCL

‘S/he is very happy!’

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The Interactions between intensifiers and SFPs

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(7) Tʻa tsɿ/xau kauɕin (*no)/ (*ni)/ (*tɛ)/ (*tɛma)/ (*wa)/(o/io). s/he very/very happy SFPFIN/SFPFOC/SFPMOD/SFPMOD/SFPINTR/SFPEXCL ‘S/he is very happy!’

The Interactions between intensifiers and SFPs

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(8) a. Tʻa nuei xən no. s/he tired very SFPFIN ‘S/he is too tired.’

• b. Tʻa

nuei xən no ni. s/he tired very SFPFIN SFPFOC ‘It is the case that s/he is too tired.’

• c. Tʻa xai nuei xən no tɛ.

s/he out_of_expectation tired very SFPFIN SFPMOD ‘(You may not be aware of the fact that) s/he is too tired.’

• d. Tʻa nuei xən no tɛma.

s/he tired very SFPFIN SFPMOD ‘It is evident that s/he is too tired.’

• e. Tʻa nuei xən no wa?

s/he tired very SFPFIN SFPINTR ‘Is s/he too tired?’

• f. Tʻa nuei xən no io!

s/he tired very SFPFIN SFPEXCL ‘S/he is too tired! (a reminder)’

The Interactions between intensifiers and SFPs

(9) a. Tʻa to kauɕin (*no) *(ni). s/he very happy SFPFIN SFPFOC ‘It is the case that s/he is very happy.’

• b. Tʻa xai to

kauɕin ni tɛ. s/he out_of_expectation very happy SFPFOC SFPMOD ‘Out of my expectation, s/he is very happy.’

• c. Tʻa to kauɕin

ni tɛma. s/he very happy SFPFOC SFPMOD ‘It is evident that s/he is very happy.’

• d. Tʻa to kauɕin

ni wa? s/he very happy SFPFOC SFPINTR ‘Is it the case that s/he is very happy?’

• e. Tʻa to kauɕin

ni o/io! s/he very happy SFPFOC SFPEXCL ‘It is indeed the case that s/he is very happy!’

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The Interactions between intensifiers and SFPs

(10) a. Tʻa tsɿiəu namo kauɕin *(no) (*ni)/(*tɛ)/ (*tɛma)/ (*wa?)/(o/io). s/he only so happy SFPFIN SFPFOC/SFPMOD/SFPMOD/SFPINTR/SFPEXCL ‘S/he is very happy.’

• b. Tʻa tsɿiəu

namo kauɕin (*ni) *(no) (o/io). s/he only so happy SFPFOC SFPEXCL SFPEXCL/SFPEXCL ‘S/he is very happy!’

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The Interactions between intensifiers and SFPs

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Table 3. The Interactions between degree expressions and SFPs. ∅ FinP FocP CP assurance modality interrogation exclamation epistemic evidential no ni

tɛ tɛma

wa no

• ,

io tɛxən ✓ X ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ tsɿ/xau ✓ X X X X X X ✓ xən X ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ to X X ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ X ✓ tsɿiəu namo X X X X X X ✓ ✓

Our Analysis

• Degree intensifiers in Chengdu Chinese are paired with various SFPs. Function-wise, intensifiers can be

divided into the following types:

• Exclamation-type degree intensifiers: tsɿ, xau, tsɿiəu namo … no
• Focus-type degree intensifiers: to… ni
• Finite-type degree intensifiers: xən no; tə xən
• Morphologically speaking, intensifiers can be categorized into two types:
• Single morpheme intensifiers: tsɿ, xau
• Double morpheme intensifiers: to… ni; tsɿiəu namo … no; xən no; tə xən
• Syntactically, degree intensification and sentential marking are encoded by double layers of DegP, with the

lower layer taking care of intensification (DegIP) and the higher one realizing the sentential function (DegSP).

• [DegSP DegS

0 [DegIP [DegI 0 [AP/VP …]]]]

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Justifications

• First, the obligatory pairing of two functions (i.e., two syntactic projections) is not a novel
• idea. For example, the shi …de cleft is analyzed to involve two syntactic projections, i.e.,

a FocP headed by shi and an AspP headed by de (Mai 2013). Similarly, degree intensifiers in Chengdu involve both DegIP for degree intensification and DegSP for sentential functions, such as marking finiteness, encoding focus and expressing exclamation.

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Justifications

• Second, this analysis captures the contrastive syntactic behaviors of degree intensifiers, in

terms of their (non-)occurrence in relative clauses. Specifically, to… ni, xən no and tə xən can occur in relative clauses, whereas tsɿ, xau, tsɿiəu namo … no cannot. This contrast follows from the fact that some intensifiers involve sentential functions at the CP layer and thus defy relativization (see Kayne 1994; Bianchi 2000; Aoun & Li 2003; Dikken & Singhapreecha 2004).

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Justifications

• Third, our analysis can provide an explanation for the semantically bleached degree word

hen ‘very’ (see Sybesma 1999; Huang 2006; Gu 2008; Grano 2010, among others). We analyze hen as the head of the higher DegSP, with the lower DegIP being null. Thus, it mainly fulfill the sentential function but weak in intensification. This analysis echoes Gu’s (2008) proposal that the function of hen is to satisfy tense requirement of a clause.

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The Conclusion

• Double Layers of DegP can capture double functions of degree intensifiers in Chengdu

Chinese.

• Intensifying the degrees
• Sentential functions
• Marking finiteness
• Encoding focus
• Expressing exclamation

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Selected References

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1. Aoun, J., and Y.-H. A. Li. 2003. Essays on the Representational and Derivational Nature of Grammar: The Diversity of Wh-Constructions. Cambridge: MIT Press. 2. Bianchi, V. 2000. The raising analysis of relative clauses: a reply to Borsley. Linguistic Inquiry 31.1:123-140.

3. Cinque, G. 1999. Adverbs and Functional Heads. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

4. Dikken, M. d., and P. Singhapreecha. 2004. Complex noun phrases and linkers. Syntax 7.1:1-54.

5. Erlewine, M. Y.: Sentence-final particles at the vP phase edge. in Proceedings of the 25th North American Conference on Chinese Linguistics (NACCL-25). (2013) 6. Grano, T.: Mandarin hen and universal markedness in gradable adjectives. Natural Language and Linguistic Theory (2012). (30)2, 513-565. 7. Gu, Y. Studies of tense, aspect and Chinese time reference. In S. Yang & F. Shengli (Eds.), Contemporary linguistic theories and related studies of Chinese (2008). (pp. 97–119). Beijing: Commerce Press. 8. Hsieh, F.-F. and Sybesma, R. P. E. On the linearization of Chinese sentence-final particles: Max spell out and why CP moves? Korea Journal of Chinese Language and

• Literature. (2011)

9. Huang, S.-Z.: Property theory, adjectives, and modification in Chinese. Journal of East Asian Linguistics, (2006) 15, 343–369.

10. Kayne, Richard S. 1994. The Antisymmetry of Syntax. Cambridge: MIT Press.

11. Lee, H.-C.: On Chinese focus and cleft constructions, PhD Dissertation, Taiwan National Tsing Hua University., (2005)

Selected References

12. Li, B.: Chinese Final Particles and the Syntax of the Periphery. Ph.D. Thesis. Universiteit Leiden. (2006) 13. Lin, J.-w.. Aspectual selection and negation in Mandarin Chinese. Linguistics, (2003) 41(3): 425-59. 14. Lin, T.-H. J.: Finiteness of clauses and raising of arguments in Mandarin Chinese. Syntax (2011). 14(1). 48–73. 15. Lin, T.-H. J.: Tense in Mandarin Chinese sentences. Syntax. (2015) 18(3). 320–342. 16. Liu, C.-S. L.: The positive morpheme in Chinese and the adjectival structure. Lingua, (2010). 120, 1010– 1056. 17. Mai, Z.: Properties of the (Shi)…de Focus Construction in Adult L2 Acquisition and Heritage Language Acquisition of Mandarin Chinese. Ph.D. Thesis. University of Cambridge. (2013) 18. Rizzi, L.: The Fine Structure of the Left Periphery. In L. Haegeman (ed.), Elements of Grammar, (1997). 281–337. Dordrecht: Kluwer. 19. Tang, S.-W.: Cartographic syntax of performative projections: evidence from Cantonese. J East Asian Linguist (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10831-019- 09202-7 20. Xiong, Z.: Syntactic analysis of the construction ‘Shi…de’ (Shi…de Goujian Yanjiu), Studies of the Chinese Language (Zhongguo yuwen), (2007) Vol. 4, pp. 321-330 21. Zhang, Niina Ning. Sentence-final aspect particles as finite markers in Mandarin Chinese. Linguistics. (2019). volume 57, issue 5, pp. 967–1023. 22. Zhang, Y., Zhang, Q., and Deng Y.: Grammar of Chengdu Chinese (Chengdu Fangyan Yufa Yanjiu), Bashu Publishing House (Bashu Shushe). (2001)

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