A pragmatic explanation of the stage level/individual level contrast in combination with locatives

  • One important difference between stage level predicates (SLPs) and individual level predicates (ILPs) is their behavior with respect to locative modifiers. It is commonly assumed that SLPs but not ILPs combine with locatives. The present study argues against a semantic account for this behavior (as advanced by e.g. Kratzer 1995, Chierchia 1995) and proposes a genuinely pragmatic explanation of the observed stage level/individual level contrast instead. The proposal is spelled out using Blutners (1998, 2000) optimality theoretic version of the Gricean maxims. Building on the observation that the respective locatives are not event-related but frame-setting modifiers, the preference for main predicates that express temporary properties is explained as a side-effect of “synchronizing” the main predicate with the locative frame in the course of finding an optimal interpretation. By emphasizing the division of labor between grammar and pragmatics, the proposed solution takes a considerable load off of semantics.

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Metadaten
Author:Claudia Maienborn
URN:urn:nbn:de:hebis:30-1111368
Publisher:CSU
Place of publication:Fresno
Document Type:Conference Proceeding
Language:English
Year of Completion:2008
Year of first Publication:2004
Publishing Institution:Universitätsbibliothek Johann Christian Senckenberg
Release Date:2008/11/03
Page Number:13
First Page:158
Last Page:170
Note:
auch in: Brian Agbayani, Vida Samiian & Benjamin Tucker (eds.) (2004), Proceedings of the Western Conference on Linguistics (WECOL), volume 15, Fresno: CSU, S. 158 - 170.
Source:B. Agbayani / V. Samiian /B. Tucker, A Pragmatic Explanation of the Stage Level/Individual Level Contrast in Combination with Locatives Proceedings of the Western Conference on Li
HeBIS-PPN:206950969
Dewey Decimal Classification:4 Sprache / 40 Sprache / 400 Sprache
Sammlungen:Linguistik
Linguistik-Klassifikation:Linguistik-Klassifikation: Syntax
Licence (German):License LogoDeutsches Urheberrecht