Complex Predicates in Japanese: A Syntactic and Semantic Study of the Notion ‘Word’

In this thoroughly revised version of 1992 Stanford dissertation, the author presents an extensive discussion of Japanese complex predicates. A broad range of constructions and predicates are discussed, which include predicative complement constructions, light verbs, causative predicates, desiderative predicates, syntactic and lexical compound verbs, and complex motion predicates. A number of new interesting facts are uncovered, and a detailed syntactic and semantic analyses are presented. On the basis of the analyses, the author argues that the notion ‘word’ must be relativized to at least three different senses: morphological, grammatical (functional), and semantic; and that this observation can be insightfully captured in the theory of Lexical-Functional Grammar. Previous proposals for each type of predicate that involve such mechanisms as argument transfer, incorporation, restructuring, etc. are thoroughly reviewed. Concrete proposals on the constraints on semantic wordhood are also made (an issue rarely discussed in the literature), drawing insights from cognitive linguistics.

Yo Matsumoto is associate professor of Japanese language and linguistics at Stanford University.

Preface
Abbreviations

1 Introduction

2 Levels of Representation, the Notion ‘Word’, and the Grammar of Japanese

2.1 Levels of Representation

2.1.1 Semantic Structure
2.1.2 Argument Structure

2.1.2.1 The Nature of Argument Structure
2.1.2.2 The Predicate in A-structure

2.1.3 Functional Structure

2.1.3.1 The Nature of Functional Structure
2.1.3.2 Mapping between A-structure and F-structure
2.1.3.3 The Predicate in F-structure

2.1.4 Constituent Structure

2.1.4.1 The Nature of Constituent Structure
2.1.4.2 Surface Realization of Grammatical Functions
2.1.4.3 The Word at C-structure

2.2 Some Grammatical Properties of Japanese Tests for the Word/Clause

2.2.1 Grammatical Subject and Logical Subject

2.2.1.1 Reflexive Jibun
2.2.1.2 Subject Honorification
2.2.1.3 Control

2.2.2 Other Functional Phenomena

2.2.2.1 Passivization
2.2.2.2 Double-o
2.2.2.3 Adjunct Interpretation
2.2.2.4 Verbal Anaphora: The Soo Suru Test

2.2.3 Constituent Structure Tests

2.2.3.1 The Distribution of Shika and Monoclausality
2.2.3.2 Tests for Morphological Wordhood

2.3 Final Note

3 The Morau and Hoshii Constructions and the Nature of the Predicative Complement

3.1 Morphological Status of -Te Morau/-Te Hoshii
3.2 Evidence for Functional Biclausality
3.3 C-Structure of the Morau/Hoshii Constructions

3.3.1 Evidence for Biclausal Constituent Structure
3.3.2 Evidence for Extraction out of a -te Complement
3.3.3 Functional Uncertainty and Constituent Structure
3.3.4 Adjacency Requirement and XCOMP Constructions

3.4 Conclusion

4 Light Verb Constructions

4.1 The Suru

4.1.1 Case Marking in the Suru Construction
4.1.2 The Argument Transfer Account
4.1.3 Further Properties of Suru and Argument Transfer
4.1.4 Problems with the Argument Transfer Account

4.1.4.1 Transfer Adjuncts
4.1.4.2 Transfer of a Non-Subject Argument
4.1.4.3 Sensitivity to Thematic Hierarchy

4.2 Light Verb Phenomena with Raising/Control Verbs

4.2.1 On Hajimeru and Kokoromiru
4.2.2 Other Raising/Control Verbs
4.2.3 Raising/Control Verbs and Argument Transfer

4.3 A Proposal

4.3.1 An Informal Analysis

4.3.1.1 Light Verb Constructions as Raising/Control Constructions
4.3.1.2 Light Verb Properties and Raising/Control Verbs

4.3.2 A Formal Account
4.3.3 The Suru Construction Revisited

4.4 More Verbal Nouns and Case Marking

4.4.1 Grammatical Functions of the Arguments of Verbal Nouns
4.2.2 An Alternative Account of Light Verb Phenomena

4.5 Conclusion

5 Desiderative Predicates

5.1 The Two Types of Desiderative Predicates
5.2 Functional Structures of Desiderative Sentences

5.2.1 Passivization
5.2.2 Adjunct Interpretation
5.2.3 Verbal Anaphora
5.2.4 Summary

5.3 Constituents Structure of Desiderative Sentences
5.4 Alternative Accounts

5.4.1 Restructuring and Constituents Structure
5.4.2 Incorporation Analysis

5.5 Nominative Object and Morphologically Complex predicates

5.5.1 Potential Predicates and Verbalized Stative Predicates
5.5.2 More Complex Cases

5.6 Conclusion

6 Morphological Causatives

6.1 Causative Predicates

6.1.1 Causative Predicates and Causation Types
6.1.2 Morphology of Causative Predicates

6.2 Functional Structure and Biclausal Analysis

6.2.1 The Issue of Biclausality
6.2.2 Causativization of Intransitive Verbs

6.2.2.1 Subject Honorification
6.2.2.2 Reflexivization
6.2.2.3 Control
6.2.2.4 Adjunct Interpretation
6.2.2.5 Verbal Anaphora

6.2.3 Causativization of Transitive Verbs

6.2.3.1 Subject Honorification
6.2.3.2 Adjunct Interpretation, Reflexivization, and Control
6.2.3.3 Desiderativization and Passivization
6.2.3.4 The Case Marking of a Causee and the Double-o Constraint
6.2.2.5 Verbal Anaphora

6.3 Argument Structure of Causitives
6.4 Constituent Structure of Causitives
6.5 Alternative Analyses

6.2.1 Incorporation Analysis
6.2.2 Alsina's Cross-lingusitic and Lexical Causatives

6.6 Semantics of Morphological and Lexical Causatives
6.7 Conclusion

7 Aspectual and Other Syntactic Compounds Verbs

7.1 Aspectual Compound Verbs
7.2 A Proposed Analyses of Some Aspectual Compounds

7.2.1 Passivization
7.2.2 Desiderativization
7.2.3 Subject Honorification
7.2.4 Adjunct Interpretation
7.2.5 Verbal Anaphora
7.2.6 Types of Syntactic Compounds

7.3 Non-aspectual Syntactic Compounds Verbs

7.3.1 Functionally Biclausal Syntactic Compound Verbs
7.3.2 Functionally Monoclausal Syntactic Compound Verbs

7.4 Alternative Analyses of Syntactic Compounds

7.4.1 Some Alternative Analyses of Aspectual Compounds
7.4.2 Passivization and Syntactic Compound Verbs

7.5 Conclusion

8 Lexical Compound Verbs

8.1 Patterns in Lexical Compounding

8.1.1 Types of Lexical Compounds
8.1.2 Pair Compounds
8.1.3 Cause Compounds
8.1.4 Manner Compounds

8.1.4.1 Right-headed Manner Compounds with Intransitive V2
8.1.4.2 Argument-Mixing Manner Compounds
8.1.4.3 Right-headed Manner Compounds with Transitive V2

8.1.5 Means Compounds
8.1.6 Other Semantic Relations
8.1.7 Compounds with Semantically Deverbalized V2
8.1.8 Compounds with Semantically Deverbalized V1

8.2 Functional and Argument Structure of Lexical Compounds
8.3 The Issue of Headedness
8.4 Semantic Structure of Lexical Compounds
8.5 Semantic Constraints on Lexical Compounds

8.5.1 Alleged Constraints on Lexical Compounds
8.5.2 Semantic Linking and Constraints on Semantic Structure

8.5.2.1 The Shared Participant Condition
8.5.2.2 Constraints on a Complex Semantic Structure

8.6 Conclusion

9 Complex Motion Predicates

9.1 C-Structure of Complex Motion Predicates

9.1.1 Evidence for C-Structure Monoclausality
9.1.2 Morphological Status of Complex Motion Predicates

9.2 Functional Monoclausality

9.2.1 Passivization
9.2.2 Adjunct Interpretation
9.2.3 Desiderativization
9.2.4 Verbal Anaphora

9.3 Monoclausality at Argument Structure: Evidence from Semantic Constraints

9.3.1 The Shared Figure Condition
9.3.2 An Apparent Counterexample
9.3.3 Alternative Accounts

9.3.3.1 Constraints on Case Markers
9.3.3.2 Constraints on the Cooccurrence of Thematic Roles
9.3.3.3 Constraints on Semantic Structure
9.3.3.4 Single Deliminating Constraint and Unique Path

9.4 Summary
9.5 Semantics of Complex Motion Predicates and Restructuring

9.5.1 The Restructuring Account
9.5.2 Semantic Differences between Complex Motion Predicates and Their Biclausal Counterparts

9.5.2.1 Purposive Complex Motion Predicates
9.5.2.2 Participial Complex Motion Predicates

9.5.3 Idiosyncrasies

9.6 Conclusion

10 Constraints on Semantic Wordhood: The Semantics of Motion Predicates

10.1 Conflation and Semantics of Motion
10.2 Conditions on Lexicalization

10.2.1 Proposed Conditions
10.2.2 Evidence from English Motion Verbs

10.3 Semantic Constraints on Complex Motion Predicates and Lexical Compounds

10.3.1 Participal Complex Motion Predicates

10.3.1.1 Evidence for the Coextensiveness Condition
10.3.1.2 More on Coextensiveness

10.3.2 Purposive Complex Motion Predicates
10.3.3 Compound Verbs

10.3.3.1 Evidence for the Coextensiveness Condition
10.3.3.2 Evidence for the Determinative Causation Condition

10.4 Formalization of Lexicalization Conditions

10.4.1 The Coextensiveness Condition

10.4.1.1 Representation of Time
10.4.1.2 Formulation of the Coextiveness Condition

10.4.2 The Determinative Causation Condition

10.5 Coextensiveness and Path Conflation

10.5.1 Cases of the Incorporation of a Path Relation

10.5.1.1 English Simplex Motion Verbs
10.5.1.2 English Complex Motion Verbs
10.5.1.3 Japanese Simplex Motion Verbs
10.5.1.4 Japanese Participial Complex Motion Predicates

10.5.2 Semantic Representation of PATH

10.5.2.1 Some Previous Proposals
10.5.2.2 Proposed Representation of PATH

10.5.3 An Account of Path Conflation

10.5.3.1 Coextensiveness and Path Conflation
10.5.3.2 Independent Evidence for TIME Values

10.6 Semantic Constraints and Wordhood at C- and F-structure
10.7 Conclusion

11 Concluding Remarks

11.1 Summary of the Proposed Analyses
11.2 Implications of Findings

11.2.1 Independence of Three Senses of the ‘Word’
11.2.2 Condition on Mismatches among Different Levels

11.3 Final Word

References
Index

12/31/96

Complex Predicates in Japanese:

Contents