Chapter 7. Complex prepositions of analogy and contrast in English
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Anatol Stefanowitsch
Abstract
Complex prepositions of the form [P (Det) N P] and [(P) ADJ to] (e.g., in addition to, with respect to, in accordance with, due to, pursuant to) undoubtedly belong to formal registers that Basil Bernstein calls “elaborated code” and that John Lucy refers to as “intellectualized language” – they are much more frequent in written than in spoken language and they are more frequent in formal non-fiction writing (bureaucratic, academic and technical texts) than in informal non-fiction (newspapers) or fiction writing, and they (seem to) construct more explicit, complex and decontextualized relationships than simple prepositions, in line with the functional pressure on such registers to give preference to accuracy over communicative economy. As such, it is interesting to study the types of relations they express, and, crucially, the types of distinctions they make with regard to these relations. Among these relations, we find contrast (as opposed to, in contrast with/to, contrary to) and, less frequently, analogy (similar to, in comparison with, by analogy with/to). This offers an opportunity to study the way in which these relations, which are implicit in linguistic construal in a wide range of constructions and processes, are used explicitly to structure knowledge – if that is, in fact, what complex prepositions do. My chapter focuses on complex prepositions of contrast and analogy and use a wide range of corpus data to show what communicative functions these serve and whether and how the distinctions made possible by the existence of alternative forms and variants are exploited both in formal and informal language.
Abstract
Complex prepositions of the form [P (Det) N P] and [(P) ADJ to] (e.g., in addition to, with respect to, in accordance with, due to, pursuant to) undoubtedly belong to formal registers that Basil Bernstein calls “elaborated code” and that John Lucy refers to as “intellectualized language” – they are much more frequent in written than in spoken language and they are more frequent in formal non-fiction writing (bureaucratic, academic and technical texts) than in informal non-fiction (newspapers) or fiction writing, and they (seem to) construct more explicit, complex and decontextualized relationships than simple prepositions, in line with the functional pressure on such registers to give preference to accuracy over communicative economy. As such, it is interesting to study the types of relations they express, and, crucially, the types of distinctions they make with regard to these relations. Among these relations, we find contrast (as opposed to, in contrast with/to, contrary to) and, less frequently, analogy (similar to, in comparison with, by analogy with/to). This offers an opportunity to study the way in which these relations, which are implicit in linguistic construal in a wide range of constructions and processes, are used explicitly to structure knowledge – if that is, in fact, what complex prepositions do. My chapter focuses on complex prepositions of contrast and analogy and use a wide range of corpus data to show what communicative functions these serve and whether and how the distinctions made possible by the existence of alternative forms and variants are exploited both in formal and informal language.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Editors and contributors ix
- Foreword xi
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. From theory to data-driven research
- Chapter 1. What could be more fundamental? 15
- Chapter 2. Diagrammatic iconicity and rendering time in a narrative text 47
- Chapter 3. Analogy in action 61
- Chapter 4. ‘My enemy’s enemy is my friend.’ 83
- Chapter 5. Contrast and analogy in aspectual distinctions of English and Polish 115
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Part II. From data-driven research to theory
- Chapter 6. From nouns to verbs 159
- Chapter 7. Complex prepositions of analogy and contrast in English 193
- Chapter 8. Emergent categories 245
- Chapter 9. A case of constructional contamination in English 283
- Chapter 10. Analogy and contrast at the morphology-syntax interface 303
- Chapter 11. Modeling constructional variation 341
- Chapter 12. Moving reader or moving text? 371
- Chapter 13. Contrasts and analogies in cluster categories of emotion concepts in monolingual and cross-linguistic contexts 405
- Index 439
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Editors and contributors ix
- Foreword xi
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. From theory to data-driven research
- Chapter 1. What could be more fundamental? 15
- Chapter 2. Diagrammatic iconicity and rendering time in a narrative text 47
- Chapter 3. Analogy in action 61
- Chapter 4. ‘My enemy’s enemy is my friend.’ 83
- Chapter 5. Contrast and analogy in aspectual distinctions of English and Polish 115
-
Part II. From data-driven research to theory
- Chapter 6. From nouns to verbs 159
- Chapter 7. Complex prepositions of analogy and contrast in English 193
- Chapter 8. Emergent categories 245
- Chapter 9. A case of constructional contamination in English 283
- Chapter 10. Analogy and contrast at the morphology-syntax interface 303
- Chapter 11. Modeling constructional variation 341
- Chapter 12. Moving reader or moving text? 371
- Chapter 13. Contrasts and analogies in cluster categories of emotion concepts in monolingual and cross-linguistic contexts 405
- Index 439
