Re: Serial verbs in trigger systems
From: | Kristian Jensen <kljensen@...> |
Date: | Monday, March 15, 1999, 17:24 |
Pablo Flores wrote:
-----<snip>-----
>My question is: does this seem farfetched? (It does,
>a bit, to me). Is this used in natlangs? Any other
>ideas? Suggestions are welcome.
You probably think its farfetched because you're not used to dealing
with trigger systems, but it looks like a fairly logical extension
of a trigger system to me. Though I fail to see any serial verbs in
the construction you have made.
Tagalog might have a similar construction. If I were to say "I cut
wood with an axe" in Tagalog, I'd normally say something like:
Gumamit ako ng palakol sa pagputol ng kahoy.
AGT.use TRG.I GEN axe OBL for-cutting GEN wood
lit.: "I am the user of an axe for the cutting of wood."
or
Palakol ang ginamit ko sa pagputol ng kahoy.
axe TRG PAT.use GEN.I OBL for-cutting GEN wood
lit.: "My instrument for the cutting of wood is an axe."
In the first option, the trigger is the first-person as the user of
an axe. In the second option, the trigger is the patient of what the
first person is using - that is, the axe.
But in your construction, you're trigger is the cutter of wood as
the user of an axe. Thus you're construction is not much different
from the Tagalog construction below:
Ako ang pumutol ng kahoy na gumamit ng palakol
I TRG AGT.cut GEN wood [ AGT.use GEN axe ]
lit.: "The cutter of wood who is the user of an axe is me."
It all depends on what you want as the trigger.
-kristian- 8-)