Startseite Affirmation as a type of modality: evidence from Serbian and English
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Affirmation as a type of modality: evidence from Serbian and English

  • Marcin Grygiel
Veröffentlicht/Copyright: 14. Juni 2013
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Abstract

The aim of the paper is to present modes of grammatical representation of affirmation in Serbian and English. I will explore the hypothesis that affirmation is a type of modality and its expression involves syntactic and morphological markers. The formal expression of strong types of affirmation modality is characte­rized by the preference for long, full and stressed variants of modal auxiliaries Alternatively, affirmative verb forms may be intensified by additional suprasegmental elements, such as intonation, or even para­linguistic tools, gestures and non-verbal ways of reinforcing a statement. This seems to confirm the general function-form isomorphism requiring the more complex mental events to be represented by more complex structures. I will argue that this requirement may initiate the process of auxiliation, perceived as a search to find a more adequate means for expressing affirmation modality.

Published Online: 2013-06-14
Published in Print: 2013-06

© by Akademie Verlag, Berlin, Germany

Heruntergeladen am 23.9.2025 von https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1524/slaw.2013.0014/html
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