TY - GEN
T1 - A semantic study of Mandarin cai as a focus adverb in simple sentences
AU - Zhang, Lei
AU - Lee, Peppina Po Lun
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - This paper examines the use of cai as a focus adverb in simple sentences. Cai as a focus adverb is supported by the three properties it demonstrated, of which König [1] argues to be the distinctive properties of focus particles. As a focus adverb, cai demonstrates the unique property of being flexible in its direction of association, with its associated item possibly being an element either to its right or to its left, or even the entire sentence. Focal mapping will then be triggered, giving the tripartite partition of Operator [Background] [Focus], in which focus is mapped to the nuclear scope and the rest of the sentence, with focus replaced by a variable, to the background. Besides, it is its direction of association that determines the scalar or non-scalar use of cai, though context still plays a role. In its scalar use, the quantificational domain of cai will be determined by the relevant scale.
AB - This paper examines the use of cai as a focus adverb in simple sentences. Cai as a focus adverb is supported by the three properties it demonstrated, of which König [1] argues to be the distinctive properties of focus particles. As a focus adverb, cai demonstrates the unique property of being flexible in its direction of association, with its associated item possibly being an element either to its right or to its left, or even the entire sentence. Focal mapping will then be triggered, giving the tripartite partition of Operator [Background] [Focus], in which focus is mapped to the nuclear scope and the rest of the sentence, with focus replaced by a variable, to the background. Besides, it is its direction of association that determines the scalar or non-scalar use of cai, though context still plays a role. In its scalar use, the quantificational domain of cai will be determined by the relevant scale.
KW - Focal mapping
KW - Focus adverb cai
KW - Focus association
KW - Scale
KW - Tripartite structure
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84874138029&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-3-642-36337-5_69
DO - 10.1007/978-3-642-36337-5_69
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:84874138029
SN - 9783642363368
T3 - Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)
SP - 685
EP - 695
BT - Chinese Lexical Semantics - 13th Workshop, CLSW 2012, Revised Selected Papers
T2 - 13th Chinese Lexical Semantics Workshop, CLSW 2012
Y2 - 6 July 2012 through 8 July 2012
ER -