2. Roles and grammatical relations in synchrony and diachrony: the case of the indirect object
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Michele Prandi
Abstract
This chapter aims at discussing whether the indirect object is a pure grammatical relation, ready to host a heterogeneous set of roles, or a motivated coding form of a coherent family of roles. After justifying the choice of the sample of languages (Italian, French, Spanish, Latin and English) and explaining the theoretical assumptions about the autonomy of syntax and its limits, the chapter provides some arguments for the hypothesis that the indirect object is a grammatical relation within the examined languages - namely, the lack of inner coherence of the set of roles associated with the indirect object, the lack of a biunivocal correlation between grammatical relations and roles, and the behaviour of the ditransitive construction when transferred onto two-place verbs. A diachronic section illustrates the shift in coding regime that leads an iconic coding form of expression of a consistent family of allative roles in Latin to become the form of expression of a grammatical relation in Romance languages. The conclusion is that the indirect object is a grammatical relation, which implies that the ditransitive construction is in the first place a formal network of grammatical relations, including a subject, a direct object and an indirect object, filled up with a three-place verb ready to provide any grammatical relation with an argument.
Abstract
This chapter aims at discussing whether the indirect object is a pure grammatical relation, ready to host a heterogeneous set of roles, or a motivated coding form of a coherent family of roles. After justifying the choice of the sample of languages (Italian, French, Spanish, Latin and English) and explaining the theoretical assumptions about the autonomy of syntax and its limits, the chapter provides some arguments for the hypothesis that the indirect object is a grammatical relation within the examined languages - namely, the lack of inner coherence of the set of roles associated with the indirect object, the lack of a biunivocal correlation between grammatical relations and roles, and the behaviour of the ditransitive construction when transferred onto two-place verbs. A diachronic section illustrates the shift in coding regime that leads an iconic coding form of expression of a consistent family of allative roles in Latin to become the form of expression of a grammatical relation in Romance languages. The conclusion is that the indirect object is a grammatical relation, which implies that the ditransitive construction is in the first place a formal network of grammatical relations, including a subject, a direct object and an indirect object, filled up with a three-place verb ready to provide any grammatical relation with an argument.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Preface V
- Contents VII
- List of abbreviations IX
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Part 1: The nature of ditransitive arguments: the contribution of diachrony
- 1. How do ditransitives change? 1
- 2. Roles and grammatical relations in synchrony and diachrony: the case of the indirect object 19
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Part 2: Ditransitive verbs and construction alternation
- 3. The spread of the ad construction in Merovingian Latin: identifying semantic paths in the domain of ditransitives 61
- 4. Old Italian ditransitive constructions: between alternation and change 97
- 5. The emergence of the dative alternation in Dutch: towards the establishment of a horizontal link 137
- 6. Attraction and differentiation in the history of the English dative and benefactive alternations 169
- 7. The ditransitive alternation in the history of German: the case of verkaufen (‘sell’) 197
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Part 3: Ditransitives between stability and further developments
- 8. The diachrony of ditransitives in Vedic Sanskrit 231
- 9. Passives of ditransitives: the gradual rise of a Recipient passive in Italian 259
- 10. ‘Hit’ semantics and physical sensations: on the development of spontaneous event constructions with Spanish dar ‘give’ 285
- Subject Index 313
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Preface V
- Contents VII
- List of abbreviations IX
-
Part 1: The nature of ditransitive arguments: the contribution of diachrony
- 1. How do ditransitives change? 1
- 2. Roles and grammatical relations in synchrony and diachrony: the case of the indirect object 19
-
Part 2: Ditransitive verbs and construction alternation
- 3. The spread of the ad construction in Merovingian Latin: identifying semantic paths in the domain of ditransitives 61
- 4. Old Italian ditransitive constructions: between alternation and change 97
- 5. The emergence of the dative alternation in Dutch: towards the establishment of a horizontal link 137
- 6. Attraction and differentiation in the history of the English dative and benefactive alternations 169
- 7. The ditransitive alternation in the history of German: the case of verkaufen (‘sell’) 197
-
Part 3: Ditransitives between stability and further developments
- 8. The diachrony of ditransitives in Vedic Sanskrit 231
- 9. Passives of ditransitives: the gradual rise of a Recipient passive in Italian 259
- 10. ‘Hit’ semantics and physical sensations: on the development of spontaneous event constructions with Spanish dar ‘give’ 285
- Subject Index 313
