To think that constructions and Japanese towa/nante constructions

Yuji Hatakeyama; Kensuke Honda; Kosuke Tanaka

doi:10.1515/jjl-2022-2059

Enjoy 40% off

academic books on De Gruyter Brill *

Article

To think that constructions and Japanese towa/nante constructions

Yuji Hatakeyama , Kensuke Honda and Kosuke Tanaka

Published/Copyright: September 21, 2022

Published by

Become an author with De Gruyter Brill

Author Information

From the journal Journal of Japanese Linguistics Volume 38 Issue 2

Abstract

English has what is called ‘the to think that construction’, in which the subordinate clause (the to-infinitive clause) is used as if it were an independent clause (e.g., To think that she could be so ruthless!). This paper shows that the to think that construction can be divided into two types depending on the contents of the that clauses: one is the “recall” type, in which the that clauses represent a speaker’s knowledge (i.e., his/her past event or experience); and the other is the “surprise” type, in which the that clauses describe an event at the speech time which the speaker regards as unbelievable. This paper further shows that the “surprise” type of the to think that construction corresponds to the Japanese exclamatory sentence, or the towa/nante construction such as Kodomo-ni anna koto-o iw-are-ru {towa/nante}! ‘(Lit.) That my child should say such a thing!’.

Keywords: Japanese towa/nante constructions; “recall” type; “surprise” type; to think that constructions

Corresponding author: Yuji Hatakeyama, Department of Biotechnology and Life Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 2-24-26 Nakamachi, Koganei City, 184-8588, Japan, E-mail: hatayu@cc.tuat.ac.jp

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to three anonymous JJL reviewers and the editor for their many constructive comments and suggestions. Their constructive criticism has been especially important in improving the quality of this paper. Our special thanks also go to Colleen Dalton, our informant, for giving us insightful comments on the to think that construction. Remaining inadequacies are of course our own.

References

Evans, Nicholas. 2007. Insubordination and its uses. In Irina Nikolaeva (ed.), Finiteness, 366–431. Oxford: Oxford University Press.10.1093/oso/9780199213733.003.0011Search in Google Scholar

Honda, Masatoshi & Keita Igarashi. 2015. To think that koobun-no kinoo-ni tuite [On the function of the to think that construction]. Eigo Gohoo Bunpoo Kenkyuu 22. 135–150.Search in Google Scholar

Huddleston, Rodney & Geoffrey K. Pullum. 2002. The Cambridge grammar of the English language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.10.1017/9781316423530Search in Google Scholar

Iori, Isao, Shino Takanasi, Kumiko Nakanishi & Toshihiro Yamada. 2001. Cyuujyookyuu o Osieru tame no Nihongo Bunpoo Handobukku [Japanese handbook for teachers of intermediate and advanced learners of Japanese]. Tokyo: Suriieenettowaaku.Search in Google Scholar

Leech, Geoffrey, Benita Cruickshank & Roz Ivanič. 2017. An A-Z of English grammar & usage (Sixteenth impression). London: Longman.Search in Google Scholar

Maeda, Mitsuru. 2015. Koobunka-no syatei-to bunpooka [The range of constructionalization and grammaticalization]. Eigo Gohoo Bunpoo Kenkyuu 22. 37–52.Search in Google Scholar

Quirk, Randolph, Sidney Greenbaum, Geoffrey Leech & Svartvik Jan. 1985. A comprehensive grammar of the English language. London: Longman.Search in Google Scholar

Sawada, Harumi. 2006. Modaritii [Modality]. Tokyo: Kaitakusha.Search in Google Scholar

Sawada, Harumi. 2014. Gendai Imikaishaku Koogi [Modern lectures on meaning and interpretation]. Tokyo: Kaitakusha.Search in Google Scholar

Received: 2020-08-21

Accepted: 2021-10-16

Published Online: 2022-09-21

Published in Print: 2022-11-25

You are currently not able to access this content.

Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/jjl-2022-2059

Keywords for this article

Japanese towa/nante constructions; “recall” type; “surprise” type; to think that constructions