Romance object-experiencer verbs
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Rolf Kailuweit
Abstract
The present paper deals with Romance Objective-Experiencer verbs (OE-verbs). I will show that the different subclasses fit into a continuum between a causative and an unaccusative pole. In order to describe their varying syntactic behaviour, a finer-grained analysis of the subevents they denote will elucidate that a traditional approach following the Vendler-Dowty classes of aktionsart will reach its limit when it comes to OE-verbs. My claim is that case assignment to the experiencer does not straightforwardly follow from the aktionsart class, but from the activity contrast between the two arguments of the verb. The presence or absence of causativity explains the differentiation between two types of experiencer: (a) a more passive causatively affected experiencer and (b) a less passive experiencer undergoing a change of state in a particular situation without being affected by an external causer. In addition, we find a third type of OE-verb: prototypically unaccustative (ergative) verbs, such as verbs of liking, which select a more active experiencer expressing a subjective judgement. These three types constitute prototypical categories with fuzzy edges. Romance languages differ in the way they code the three types at the lexical level and at the level of the constructional inventory. The results can be formalized following the activity hierarchy approach (Kailuweit 2013).
Abstract
The present paper deals with Romance Objective-Experiencer verbs (OE-verbs). I will show that the different subclasses fit into a continuum between a causative and an unaccusative pole. In order to describe their varying syntactic behaviour, a finer-grained analysis of the subevents they denote will elucidate that a traditional approach following the Vendler-Dowty classes of aktionsart will reach its limit when it comes to OE-verbs. My claim is that case assignment to the experiencer does not straightforwardly follow from the aktionsart class, but from the activity contrast between the two arguments of the verb. The presence or absence of causativity explains the differentiation between two types of experiencer: (a) a more passive causatively affected experiencer and (b) a less passive experiencer undergoing a change of state in a particular situation without being affected by an external causer. In addition, we find a third type of OE-verb: prototypically unaccustative (ergative) verbs, such as verbs of liking, which select a more active experiencer expressing a subjective judgement. These three types constitute prototypical categories with fuzzy edges. Romance languages differ in the way they code the three types at the lexical level and at the level of the constructional inventory. The results can be formalized following the activity hierarchy approach (Kailuweit 2013).
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- List of contributors xvii
- The conceptualization of change of state in verbs coming from gentilicios 1
- Event structure and lexical semantics in a scalar approach to actionality 21
- Lexical synonymy and argumental structure 60
- Inner and outer prepositions with Spanish verbs of vertical movement 77
- Argumental comitative and reciprocity in Spanish 98
- Causativity and psychological verbs in Spanish 110
- Lexical agreement processes 131
- Variable aspectual coercion in Spanish fictive motion expressions 153
- Agent control over non culminating events 185
- The pseudo-copulative verbs verse and sentirse 218
- On events that express properties 238
- Some reflections on verbs with clitic increase 264
- Transitivity and verb classes 288
- Romance object-experiencer verbs 312
- Aspectual approach to causative-resultative denominal verbs 334
- Denominal parasynthesis and inchoativity from both lexical-semantic and aspectual points of view 357
- Diachronic prototypicity and stativity in Spanish physical affection verbs 378
- Negative imperatives with Spanish copulas ser y estar 412
- Index 439
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- List of contributors xvii
- The conceptualization of change of state in verbs coming from gentilicios 1
- Event structure and lexical semantics in a scalar approach to actionality 21
- Lexical synonymy and argumental structure 60
- Inner and outer prepositions with Spanish verbs of vertical movement 77
- Argumental comitative and reciprocity in Spanish 98
- Causativity and psychological verbs in Spanish 110
- Lexical agreement processes 131
- Variable aspectual coercion in Spanish fictive motion expressions 153
- Agent control over non culminating events 185
- The pseudo-copulative verbs verse and sentirse 218
- On events that express properties 238
- Some reflections on verbs with clitic increase 264
- Transitivity and verb classes 288
- Romance object-experiencer verbs 312
- Aspectual approach to causative-resultative denominal verbs 334
- Denominal parasynthesis and inchoativity from both lexical-semantic and aspectual points of view 357
- Diachronic prototypicity and stativity in Spanish physical affection verbs 378
- Negative imperatives with Spanish copulas ser y estar 412
- Index 439
