To think that constructions and Japanese towa/nante constructions
-
Yuji Hatakeyama
,
Kensuke Honda
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!’.
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/9780199213733.003.0011Suche 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.Suche in Google Scholar
Huddleston, Rodney & Geoffrey K. Pullum. 2002. The Cambridge grammar of the English language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.10.1017/9781316423530Suche 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.Suche in Google Scholar
Leech, Geoffrey, Benita Cruickshank & Roz Ivanič. 2017. An A-Z of English grammar & usage (Sixteenth impression). London: Longman.Suche in Google Scholar
Maeda, Mitsuru. 2015. Koobunka-no syatei-to bunpooka [The range of constructionalization and grammaticalization]. Eigo Gohoo Bunpoo Kenkyuu 22. 37–52.Suche in Google Scholar
Quirk, Randolph, Sidney Greenbaum, Geoffrey Leech & Svartvik Jan. 1985. A comprehensive grammar of the English language. London: Longman.Suche in Google Scholar
Sawada, Harumi. 2006. Modaritii [Modality]. Tokyo: Kaitakusha.Suche in Google Scholar
Sawada, Harumi. 2014. Gendai Imikaishaku Koogi [Modern lectures on meaning and interpretation]. Tokyo: Kaitakusha.Suche in Google Scholar
© 2022 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Editorial
- Articles
- The nominative-to-accusative shift in Japanese: diachronic and synchronic considerations
- Syntactic and lexical -ase- are distinct suffixes
- To think that constructions and Japanese towa/nante constructions
- Power and elegance: the language of Sakurai Yoshiko
- Book Reviews
- Prashant Pardeshi and Kaoru Horie (eds.): Nihongo to sekai no gengo no meisisyuusyoku-hyoogen
- Taro Kageyama: Ten to sen no gengogaku: Gengo-ruikē-gaku kara mieta Nihongo no honshitsu [Individuals and Links in Language Typology]
- Taro Kageyama, Peter E. Hook and Prashant Pardeshi (eds.): Verb-verb Complexes in Asian Languages
- Yoko Yonezawa: The Mysterious Address Term anata ‘you’ in Japanese
- Kiyoko Toratani (ed.): The Language of Food in Japanese: Cognitive Perspectives and Beyond
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Editorial
- Articles
- The nominative-to-accusative shift in Japanese: diachronic and synchronic considerations
- Syntactic and lexical -ase- are distinct suffixes
- To think that constructions and Japanese towa/nante constructions
- Power and elegance: the language of Sakurai Yoshiko
- Book Reviews
- Prashant Pardeshi and Kaoru Horie (eds.): Nihongo to sekai no gengo no meisisyuusyoku-hyoogen
- Taro Kageyama: Ten to sen no gengogaku: Gengo-ruikē-gaku kara mieta Nihongo no honshitsu [Individuals and Links in Language Typology]
- Taro Kageyama, Peter E. Hook and Prashant Pardeshi (eds.): Verb-verb Complexes in Asian Languages
- Yoko Yonezawa: The Mysterious Address Term anata ‘you’ in Japanese
- Kiyoko Toratani (ed.): The Language of Food in Japanese: Cognitive Perspectives and Beyond
