Re: Probability of Article Replacement?

In a message dated 3/1/2003 2:07:43 AM Eastern Standard Time,
czhang23@AOL.COM writes:


>     This is an interesting topic... I searched thru my ConLang "Syntax"
> notes
> and found this - written by David E. Bell:
>
> amman iar definite determiners distinguish four levels of definiteness.
>
> (snip description)
Interesting.  My (still very sketchy) principal conlang has 4 kinds of
article:

1. Definite: "The dog bit me."
2. Generic: "The dog was the first animal domesticated by humans."  "Dogs are
mammals."
3. Specific indefinite: "I'm looking for a dog. (It was here a minute ago; it
must have run off.)"
4. Nonspecific indefinite: "I'm looking for a dog.  (I haven't had one since
I was a child; I'd like to get one again.)"

I was distinct annoyed to read in _Definiteness_ that "It has often been
pointed out that no language has noun phrases distinctively generic in form."
 That is, my article #2 seems to violate a linguistic universal that generics
are treated as either definite or indefinite.

Doug

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