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Re: a grammar sketch...

From:H. S. Teoh <hsteoh@...>
Date:Saturday, September 30, 2000, 3:34
On Fri, Sep 29, 2000 at 08:08:00PM -0700, Marcus Smith wrote:
[snip]
> Don't think of the dative as a "secondary" case. Think of the accusative > as the lowest-of-the-low. That is, it is the case that goes to the *least* > important object. In a monotransitive that is the only object by > default. In a ditransitive, it is the direct object. The dative goes to > the "more important" indirect object.
[snip] OK, perhaps "secondary" isn't the right word. What I was trying to say was that I find it odd that the recipient of a verb like "to give" is in a different case (dative) from the object of other verbs, such as "to hit". To me, the gift isn't the one undergoing the act of giving; it is the recipient who is the main "experiencer" (or whatever you care to call it) of the act of giving. The gift is a side-issue that should at least be treated differently from the "experiencer" of a verb like "to hit". T