Re: Odd construct
| From: | Matthew Pearson <matthew.pearson@...> |
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| Date: | Thursday, October 11, 2001, 21:53 |
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--- You wrote:
I think the 'there is' in English is idiomatic. Other languages use a
different verb or a completely different construct.
--- end of quote ---
Saying it's idiomatic doesn't really explain anything, though. In fact, if we call
"there is" an idiom, then we're essentially claiming that there's nothing to
explain about this construction. But that doesn't seem to be right. Note for
example that the expletive "there" doesn't always appear with "be", but can
also occur (marginally, perhaps) with certain other verbs:
? There entered a man.
? There appeared a new star on the horizon.
? There came no answer to his question. (cf. "...but answer came there none")
Also, note that "there" and "be" can be separated from each other by intervening
material, as in raising constructions:
There seems (to Carlo) [ to be a butterfly on the table ]
These suggest to me that "there" and "be" do not form a single unit comparable to "hay" in Spanish.
Matt.
Matt Pearson
Department of Linguistics
Reed College
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd
Portland, OR 97202 USA
ph: 503-771-1112 (x 7618)
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