RUcore Resource Object
RUcore Resource Object
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Uniform TitleDegree modification in natural language
NameRett, Jessica (author), Schwarzschild, Roger (chair), Baker, Mark (internal member), Dayal, Veneeta (internal member), Kratzer, Angelika (outside member), Rutgers University, Graduate School - New Brunswick,
Degree Date2008-10
Date Created2008
SubjectLinguistics,
Grammar, Comparative and general--Syntax,
Semantics
DescriptionThis dissertation is a study of the roles played by degree modifiers -- functions from sets of degrees to sets of degrees -- across different constructions and languages. The immediate goal of such a project is a better understanding of the distribution of these morphemes and how they contribute to the meaning of an expression.
More broadly, a study of the semantics of degree modifiers is of interest because it helps demonstrate parallels between the degree and individual domains.
Chapter 1 introduces the assumptions made and practices followed in the dissertation. Chapter 2 presents a first study of degree modification: 'm-words,' a term I use to refer to 'many', 'much', 'few', 'little', and their cross-linguistic counterparts. I argue that they are functions from a set of degrees to its measure. This characterization is based on accounts of m-words as differentials in comparatives; I extend it to other occurrences of m-words, e.g. as they occur pre-nominally and in quantity questions in Balkan languages.
Chapter 3 broadens the study of degree modifiers to the semantic property 'evaluativity'. A construction is evaluative if it refers to a degree that exceeds a standard, as in 'John is tall'. I argue that evaluativity is encoded in the null degree modifier 'EVAL,' a function from a set of degrees to those which exceed a contextually-valued standard. Evidence for this approach is the occurrence of evaluativity in expressions with and without degree quantifiers (pace 'POS' approaches). I extend the account to a wide variety of evaluative and non-evaluative constructions.
Chapter 4 begins as an extension of Chapter 3: it is a study of exclamatives (like 'Boy, how very tall John is!'), which seem to be evaluative. Addressing this issue, I argue, requires characterizing the content of exclamatives as degree properties. In the end, such an account suggests that the scope of degree modification extends beyond canonical degree constructions.
More broadly, a study of the semantics of degree modifiers is of interest because it helps demonstrate parallels between the degree and individual domains.
Chapter 1 introduces the assumptions made and practices followed in the dissertation. Chapter 2 presents a first study of degree modification: 'm-words,' a term I use to refer to 'many', 'much', 'few', 'little', and their cross-linguistic counterparts. I argue that they are functions from a set of degrees to its measure. This characterization is based on accounts of m-words as differentials in comparatives; I extend it to other occurrences of m-words, e.g. as they occur pre-nominally and in quantity questions in Balkan languages.
Chapter 3 broadens the study of degree modifiers to the semantic property 'evaluativity'. A construction is evaluative if it refers to a degree that exceeds a standard, as in 'John is tall'. I argue that evaluativity is encoded in the null degree modifier 'EVAL,' a function from a set of degrees to those which exceed a contextually-valued standard. Evidence for this approach is the occurrence of evaluativity in expressions with and without degree quantifiers (pace 'POS' approaches). I extend the account to a wide variety of evaluative and non-evaluative constructions.
Chapter 4 begins as an extension of Chapter 3: it is a study of exclamatives (like 'Boy, how very tall John is!'), which seem to be evaluative. Addressing this issue, I argue, requires characterizing the content of exclamatives as degree properties. In the end, such an account suggests that the scope of degree modification extends beyond canonical degree constructions.
NotePh.D.
NoteIncludes bibliographical references (p. 210-228).
Genretheses
Persistent URLhttp://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.2/rucore10001600001.ETD.17550
LanguageEnglish
CollectionGraduate School - New Brunswick Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Organization NameRutgers, The State University of New Jersey
RightsThe author owns the copyright to this work.