Exploring a diachronic (re)cycle of roles
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Chiara Fedriani
Abstract
In this chapter we explore the struggle between the use of the Dative case and the competing strategy featuring the preposition ad ‘to’ and the Accusative from Latin to Early Romance. Unlike the Dative, the prepositional strategy is semantically transparent, since ad ‘to’ has a clear allative meaning. We first consider the diachronic development of the roles involved in the Dative-marked complex within a chronological span ranging from Plautus to the Vulgate and show that competing manifestations featuring ad are conditioned by semantic factors, since the extension of the prepositional strategy can be better explained in terms of metaphoric and metonymic processes. We discuss the gradual expansion of the prepositional turn in Early Romance with a view to exploring the paths along which it gradually took over the functions traditionally associated with the Dative complex. Building on these data, the chapter assesses the theoretical implications for a better understanding of competing multifunctional devices that encode role complexes from a diachronic perspective and shows how a pool of synchronic variation can trigger and constrain linguistic change.
Abstract
In this chapter we explore the struggle between the use of the Dative case and the competing strategy featuring the preposition ad ‘to’ and the Accusative from Latin to Early Romance. Unlike the Dative, the prepositional strategy is semantically transparent, since ad ‘to’ has a clear allative meaning. We first consider the diachronic development of the roles involved in the Dative-marked complex within a chronological span ranging from Plautus to the Vulgate and show that competing manifestations featuring ad are conditioned by semantic factors, since the extension of the prepositional strategy can be better explained in terms of metaphoric and metonymic processes. We discuss the gradual expansion of the prepositional turn in Early Romance with a view to exploring the paths along which it gradually took over the functions traditionally associated with the Dative complex. Building on these data, the chapter assesses the theoretical implications for a better understanding of competing multifunctional devices that encode role complexes from a diachronic perspective and shows how a pool of synchronic variation can trigger and constrain linguistic change.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
-
Introduction
- Recent developments and open questions in the field of semantic roles 1
- Identifying semantic role clusters and alignment types via microrole coexpression tendencies 27
- Semantic role clustering 51
- Semantic roles and verbless constructions 79
- Benefaction proper and surrogation 109
- Exploring a diachronic (re)cycle of roles 133
- Functive phrases in typological and diachronic perspective 173
- Language index 217
- Subject index 219
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
-
Introduction
- Recent developments and open questions in the field of semantic roles 1
- Identifying semantic role clusters and alignment types via microrole coexpression tendencies 27
- Semantic role clustering 51
- Semantic roles and verbless constructions 79
- Benefaction proper and surrogation 109
- Exploring a diachronic (re)cycle of roles 133
- Functive phrases in typological and diachronic perspective 173
- Language index 217
- Subject index 219
