Diaphasic variation and change in French pronouns
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Anita Berit Hansen
Abstract
The French pronominal paradigm demonstrates a colloquial variation between expressing the 1st person plural as on and as nous (On est 19 dans ma classe meaning the same as Nous sommes 19 dans ma classe). This use of definite on is stigmatized by some as working class and incorrect and seen as a spreading feature, but seen by others as a stable stylistic ressource. The present article (inspired by Coveney 2000) investigates the speech of six young Parisians in different kinds of speech situations, in order not only to examine the possible diaphasic dimension of the on/nous alternation, but also to look into their other uses of on, in search of an explanation of the increasing popularity of this pronoun in French.
Abstract
The French pronominal paradigm demonstrates a colloquial variation between expressing the 1st person plural as on and as nous (On est 19 dans ma classe meaning the same as Nous sommes 19 dans ma classe). This use of definite on is stigmatized by some as working class and incorrect and seen as a spreading feature, but seen by others as a stable stylistic ressource. The present article (inspired by Coveney 2000) investigates the speech of six young Parisians in different kinds of speech situations, in order not only to examine the possible diaphasic dimension of the on/nous alternation, but also to look into their other uses of on, in search of an explanation of the increasing popularity of this pronoun in French.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction to deixis and pronouns in Romance languages 1
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Part I. Deixis and grammatical paradigms
- Deixis and person in the development of Greek personal pronominal paradigms 19
- First person strong pronouns in spoken French 33
- Preservation, modification, and innovation. Paradigmatic reorganisation of the system of personal pronouns – from Latin into Modern Italian 49
- On the grammar of kinship 69
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Part II. Deixis and impersonality
- Impersonality in Spanish personal pronouns 87
- The Spanish impersonal se -construction 109
- Diaphasic variation and change in French pronouns 125
- Clitic subjects in French text messages 147
- The use of personal deixis as an ideological instrument in Spanish political discourse 171
- Cognitive collages and other mental representations of address forms and strategies 189
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Part IV. Deixis and the verbal system
- The relevance of deixis in the description of the predicative relative clause 207
- The marking of person deixis in the French future system – a diachronic approach 227
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Part V. Deixis in a metalinguistic perspective
- Place deixis in the 16th century grammars of Italy 253
- Deixis and reference in the treatment of personal pronouns and demonstratives in Francesco Soave 273
- Name index 285
- Subject index 287
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction to deixis and pronouns in Romance languages 1
-
Part I. Deixis and grammatical paradigms
- Deixis and person in the development of Greek personal pronominal paradigms 19
- First person strong pronouns in spoken French 33
- Preservation, modification, and innovation. Paradigmatic reorganisation of the system of personal pronouns – from Latin into Modern Italian 49
- On the grammar of kinship 69
-
Part II. Deixis and impersonality
- Impersonality in Spanish personal pronouns 87
- The Spanish impersonal se -construction 109
- Diaphasic variation and change in French pronouns 125
- Clitic subjects in French text messages 147
- The use of personal deixis as an ideological instrument in Spanish political discourse 171
- Cognitive collages and other mental representations of address forms and strategies 189
-
Part IV. Deixis and the verbal system
- The relevance of deixis in the description of the predicative relative clause 207
- The marking of person deixis in the French future system – a diachronic approach 227
-
Part V. Deixis in a metalinguistic perspective
- Place deixis in the 16th century grammars of Italy 253
- Deixis and reference in the treatment of personal pronouns and demonstratives in Francesco Soave 273
- Name index 285
- Subject index 287
