The distribution of French intransitive predicates
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10292255 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Michel Achard (Rice University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2009 |
| Volume | 47 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Publication date | 2009-01-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Linguistics (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0024-3949 • E-ISSN: 1613-396X |
| Publisher | Walter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE) |
| DOI | 10.1515/ling.2009.018 |
| OpenAlex | W2060869307 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 12 |
This article investigates the distribution of intransitive predicates in French. It argues that within each individual construction, the constraints that govern predicate selection are determined by the necessary semantic compatibility between the participating predicates and the construction itself. This “local” analysis based on the lexical semantics of specific verbs and constructions contrasts with most previous accounts that follow the Unaccusative Hypothesis' claim that predicate distribution follows the specific structure of two distinct classes of intransitives. The local analysis is shown to be preferable to its structural counterpart to describe the behavior of intransitives in three constructions, namely: active impersonals, object raising in the context of the faire ‘make’ construction, and croire union. Because object raising and croire union are traditionally considered unaccusative diagnostics, the results obtained in this article raise serious questions about the validity of the Unaccusative Hypothesis for French, and suggests a possible alternative methodology to investigate the syntactic behavior of intransitive predicates
Linguistics · Natural language processing · Object (grammar) · Predicate (mathematical logic) · Programming language · Raising (metalworking) · Computer Science · Linguistics and Discourse Analysis · Mathematics · Philosophy · Phonetics and Phonology Research · Syntax, Semantics, Linguistic Variation
O– and D–Predicates
The French Presentational as a Base Generated Structure
When subjects behave like objects
Subjectification
French impersonal constructions
Change of state and valency
Unaccusativity in French
Split Intransitivity in Japanese and the Unaccusative Hypothesis
Gradients in Auxiliary Selection with Intransitive Verbs
Semantic Parameters of Split Intransitivity
| Citations per year | 0.19 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2010 - 2021 (12) |
| Highly cited | No |