Re: Degrees of volition in active languages (was Re: Chevraqis: asketch)

> From: Vasiliy Chernov
> Subject: Re: Degrees of volition in active languages (was Re: Chevraqis:
> asketch)
>
>
> On Sat, 12 Aug 2000 07:04:00 -0400, The Gray Wizard <dbell@...>
> wrote:
>
> >amman iar uses word order for pragmatic distinctions, giving
> preference to
> >TFV (topic, focus, verb) order.
>
> I've just noticed that T&F belong to a different set than V.
>
> Do you never treat verbs as T or F? Do you use any transformation when
> a V is a T or a F, pragmatically? Could not find the answer on your
> site, at a glance.
No, amman iar has no facility for treating the verb as T or F.  In amman iar
the pragmatic consideration if which of the _arguments_ of the verb are T or
F not the verb itself.

> (Also, "TFV" sounds a bit weird to me as a speaker of a natlang with
> word order mostly determined by the pragmatic factors.)
Why is that?  TFV is not unusual for SOV languages and amman iar is largely,
although not exclusively SOV.  amman iar is very verb-centric IMO and the
tendency to place new information close to the all-important verb seems
natural to me.

David

David E. Bell
The Gray Wizard
    dbell@graywizard.net
    www.graywizard.net

"Wisdom begins in wonder." - Socrates