John Benjamins Publishing Company
Time reference in English indirect speech
Abstract
When a quotation is syntactically embedded in English, there are repercussions for temporal reference: absolute referential elements have to shift to the new deictic centre. Absolute adverbials must be adapted, dropped or replaced by relative elements. Tense undergoes so-called sequence of tenses (tense copying): a past tense main clause requires backshifting of the embedded tense. The chapter discusses Comrie’s (1986) analysis of this phenomenon and examines exceptions. It discusses criticism by Declerck (1988) and goes on to show how Functional Discourse Grammar (Hengeveld & Mackenzie 2008) elegantly explains the data: tense copying, triggered by a Reportativity operator at the Interpersonal Level, is accounted for by operator copying at the Morphosyntactic Level, restricted by information from the Representational Level.
Abstract
When a quotation is syntactically embedded in English, there are repercussions for temporal reference: absolute referential elements have to shift to the new deictic centre. Absolute adverbials must be adapted, dropped or replaced by relative elements. Tense undergoes so-called sequence of tenses (tense copying): a past tense main clause requires backshifting of the embedded tense. The chapter discusses Comrie’s (1986) analysis of this phenomenon and examines exceptions. It discusses criticism by Declerck (1988) and goes on to show how Functional Discourse Grammar (Hengeveld & Mackenzie 2008) elegantly explains the data: tense copying, triggered by a Reportativity operator at the Interpersonal Level, is accounted for by operator copying at the Morphosyntactic Level, restricted by information from the Representational Level.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Abbreviations vii
- Introduction 1
- A new approach to clausal constituent order 15
- The interaction between tense and evidentials of event perception and deduction in Brazilian Native languages 39
- Spatial adpositions between lexicon and grammar 67
- On the representation of roots, stems and finals in Blackfoot 95
- Conceptual representation and formulation 125
- External possessors and related constructions in Functional Discourse Grammar 155
- Time reference in English indirect speech 189
- The X is ( is ) construction 213
- Raising in Functional Discourse Grammar 249
- Objective and subjective deontic modal necessity in FDG – evidence from Spanish auxiliary expressions 277
- Name index 301
- Language index 305
- Subject index 309
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Abbreviations vii
- Introduction 1
- A new approach to clausal constituent order 15
- The interaction between tense and evidentials of event perception and deduction in Brazilian Native languages 39
- Spatial adpositions between lexicon and grammar 67
- On the representation of roots, stems and finals in Blackfoot 95
- Conceptual representation and formulation 125
- External possessors and related constructions in Functional Discourse Grammar 155
- Time reference in English indirect speech 189
- The X is ( is ) construction 213
- Raising in Functional Discourse Grammar 249
- Objective and subjective deontic modal necessity in FDG – evidence from Spanish auxiliary expressions 277
- Name index 301
- Language index 305
- Subject index 309
