Chapter 2. Syntactic and semantic constraints on pronoun and anaphor resolution in Persian
-
Elias Abdollahnejad
Abstract
This chapter investigates the mechanism of reference resolution for the colloquial pronoun un “(s)he” and the anaphor xod-eš “self-3sg” in Persian. The present analysis serves as another piece of evidence in support of the ‘multiple constraints’ framework for reference resolution advanced in Kaiser (2003) and Kaiser et al. (2009), while also contributing to the relatively scant analyses of Persian reference resolution. In identifying the differences in sensitivity to constraints, though, we argue that xod-eš and un are fundamentally different in their binding behaviour. Regarding the semantic constraints, we observed that un is more sensitive to a perceiver bias than xod-eš. We further reinforce the bound nature of xod-eš with the observation that it requires a c-commanding antecedent. This, along with the observed tolerance for (syntactic) binding both within and beyond the local clause, motivates its comparison with the Korean caki and Chinese ziji “self”, both of which share these properties.
Abstract
This chapter investigates the mechanism of reference resolution for the colloquial pronoun un “(s)he” and the anaphor xod-eš “self-3sg” in Persian. The present analysis serves as another piece of evidence in support of the ‘multiple constraints’ framework for reference resolution advanced in Kaiser (2003) and Kaiser et al. (2009), while also contributing to the relatively scant analyses of Persian reference resolution. In identifying the differences in sensitivity to constraints, though, we argue that xod-eš and un are fundamentally different in their binding behaviour. Regarding the semantic constraints, we observed that un is more sensitive to a perceiver bias than xod-eš. We further reinforce the bound nature of xod-eš with the observation that it requires a c-commanding antecedent. This, along with the observed tolerance for (syntactic) binding both within and beyond the local clause, motivates its comparison with the Korean caki and Chinese ziji “self”, both of which share these properties.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Chapter 1. Advances in Iranian linguistics 1
- Chapter 2. Syntactic and semantic constraints on pronoun and anaphor resolution in Persian 15
- Chapter 3. A multi-dimensional approach to classification of Iran’s languages 29
- Chapter 4. The additive particle in Persian 57
- Chapter 5. The pronoun-to-agreement cycle in Iranian 85
- Chapter 6. The suffix that makes Persian nouns unique 107
- Chapter 7. The meaning of the Persian object marker rā 119
- Chapter 8. Topic agreement, experiencer constructions, and the weight of clitics 137
- Chapter 9. Another look at Persian rā 155
- Chapter 10. The Ezafe construction revisited 173
- Chapter 11. Quantitative meter in Persian folk songs and pop lyrics 237
- Chapter 12. Stripping structures with negation in Persian 257
- Chapter 13. Oblique marking and adpositional constructions in Tat 275
- Author index 301
- Languages index 305
- Subject index 307
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Chapter 1. Advances in Iranian linguistics 1
- Chapter 2. Syntactic and semantic constraints on pronoun and anaphor resolution in Persian 15
- Chapter 3. A multi-dimensional approach to classification of Iran’s languages 29
- Chapter 4. The additive particle in Persian 57
- Chapter 5. The pronoun-to-agreement cycle in Iranian 85
- Chapter 6. The suffix that makes Persian nouns unique 107
- Chapter 7. The meaning of the Persian object marker rā 119
- Chapter 8. Topic agreement, experiencer constructions, and the weight of clitics 137
- Chapter 9. Another look at Persian rā 155
- Chapter 10. The Ezafe construction revisited 173
- Chapter 11. Quantitative meter in Persian folk songs and pop lyrics 237
- Chapter 12. Stripping structures with negation in Persian 257
- Chapter 13. Oblique marking and adpositional constructions in Tat 275
- Author index 301
- Languages index 305
- Subject index 307
