Subject clitics in English
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Laurel J. Brinton
Abstract
As a counterexample to unidirectionality in grammaticalization, Newmeyer (1998:270) cites the loss of second-person singular subject clitics, e.g., in hastou and wiltou, in 16th century English (Kroch et al. 1982). These forms are a common, albeit optional, feature of Middle English. Though full thou forms replace -tou/-tow clitics in Early Modern English, second-person plural enclitics, subject proclitics, and object enclitics attest to the continued viability of clisis. This paper argues that -tou/-tow is a reduced form, not a clitic, its disappearance being attributable to loss of a phonological rule, not decliticization. This change predates the replacement of thou by you, the non-expression of subjects in imperatives, and the spread of do in questions and is sudden rather than gradual.
Abstract
As a counterexample to unidirectionality in grammaticalization, Newmeyer (1998:270) cites the loss of second-person singular subject clitics, e.g., in hastou and wiltou, in 16th century English (Kroch et al. 1982). These forms are a common, albeit optional, feature of Middle English. Though full thou forms replace -tou/-tow clitics in Early Modern English, second-person plural enclitics, subject proclitics, and object enclitics attest to the continued viability of clisis. This paper argues that -tou/-tow is a reduced form, not a clitic, its disappearance being attributable to loss of a phonological rule, not decliticization. This change predates the replacement of thou by you, the non-expression of subjects in imperatives, and the spread of do in questions and is sudden rather than gradual.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- Introduction ix
- Three perspectives on grammaticalization 1
- Have to, gotta, must ? 33
- The semantic path from modality to aspect 57
- The passival and the progressive passive 79
- Corpus linguistics and grammaticalisation theory 121
- Grammaticalisation from side to side 151
- Are low-frequency complex prepositions grammaticalized? 171
- Life after degrammaticalisation 211
- Subject clitics in English 227
- Name index 257
- Subject index 261
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- Introduction ix
- Three perspectives on grammaticalization 1
- Have to, gotta, must ? 33
- The semantic path from modality to aspect 57
- The passival and the progressive passive 79
- Corpus linguistics and grammaticalisation theory 121
- Grammaticalisation from side to side 151
- Are low-frequency complex prepositions grammaticalized? 171
- Life after degrammaticalisation 211
- Subject clitics in English 227
- Name index 257
- Subject index 261
