Theiling Online    Sitemap    Conlang Mailing List HQ   

THEORY: Dative Movement, Applicative Voice, Valence-Changing Processes

From:Tom Chappell <tomhchappell@...>
Date:Thursday, June 30, 2005, 15:37
Hello, it's me again, with another THEORY question.
And, once again, it involves ditransitives.

Might "Dative Movement" reasonably be considered an example of an "Applicative Voice"?

Usually, an Applicative Voice is a process by which an Oblique argument is promoted
into the Direct Object position. The erstwhile Direct Object, if it existed, is
either demoted to implicit, or demoted to an Oblique argument, usually marked,
usually by an adposition. The verb in Applicative Voice is always marked to
show it is now in Applicative Voice, and is sometimes marked to show which
Oblique argument the new Direct Object came from.

If the pre-Applicative clause had no Direct Object (that is, was Intransitive),
then the Applicative clause will have a higher valence (namely, 2).

In Dative Movement, the Indirect Object is promoted to Direct Object position,
and the Direct Object is demoted to implicit or Oblique. Whether or not this
constitutes a form of Applicative Voice depends on whether or not one considers
Indirect Objects "Oblique arguments".

Dative Movement reduces the valency of the verb from 3 to 2.

Languages with Primary/Secondary instead of Direct/Indirect Objects have Anti-Dative
Movement instead of Dative Movement.

In Anti-Dative Movement, the Secondary Object is promoted to Primary Object
position, and the Primary Object is demoted to implicit or Oblique, usually
marked, usually by an adposition; whether or not Anti-Dative Movement
constitutes an example of Applicative Voice will depend on whether or not the
Secondary Object is regarded as an "Oblique argument".

Anti-Dative Movement reduces the valency of the clause from 3 to 2.

An example of Anti-Dative Movement in English is as follows;

Before A.D.M.:  "John sent Marcia the note."
(               Subject = John;
(    Primary Object = Marcia;
(Secondary Object = the note)

After    A.D.M.:  "John sent the note to Marcia."
(Subject = John;
(  Object = the note;
(Oblique = to Marcia)

Or:
After    A.D.M.:  "John sent the note."
(Subject = John;
(  Object = the note)


(However, in this English example the verb "sent" is not different in the two clauses
before and after the Anti-Dative Movement. I am not sure I remembered it right,
but IIRC Applicative Voice is supposed to always have the verb marked so that
you know something happened, even if you have to use other cues or common sense
to figure out what, exactly, it was. If that is the case, it would mean that,
at least in English, Anti-Dative Movement isn't, or isn't always, an example of
Applicative Voice.)

-----

Is there anywhere a systematic way of organizing all of the Grammatical Voices,
Dative and Anti-Dative Movements, Applicative Voices, Reference Switching, and
such stuff like that?

-----

Tom H.C. in MI

Thanks, anyone, for writing any reply.  All will be read, and welcomed.


		
---------------------------------
Yahoo! Sports
 Rekindle the Rivalries. Sign up for Fantasy Football

Reply

Rodlox R <rodlox@...>a division of non-Personal tenses?