LINGUIST List 8.1108

Wed Jul 30 1997

Disc: French

Editor for this issue: Martin Jacobsen <martylinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. CANAC MARQUIS REJEAN, Re: 8.1098, Qs: French, Chinese poetry, Bannock

Message 1: Re: 8.1098, Qs: French, Chinese poetry, Bannock

> 
> -------------------------------- Message 1 -------------------------------
> 
> Date: Sat, 26 Jul 1997 20:23:41 -0400
> From: ewb2cornell.edu (E. Wayles Browne)
> Subject: Question for French speakers
> 
> In English one can distinguish two different placements of an adverb
> with two different readings:
> 
> (1) The conflict is not clearly an international problem. "Perhaps
> the conflict is an international problem, perhaps it is not an
> international problem; whether it is an international problem or not
> is not clear."
> 
> (2) The conflict is clearly not an international problem. "The
> conflict is not an international problem. That is clear."
> 
> In French, does
> 
> (3) Le conflit n'est clairement pas un probl=E8me international. have
> the meaning of (1) or (2) or both? Are there other possible placements
> of _clairement_ which would have a meaning differing from that of (3)?

Rejean Canac Marquis, UQAM (linguistics) & Simon Fraser University (French
dept)

Clearly, sentence (3) has the meaning (2), not (1).If CLAIREMENT is after
PAS, then meaning (1) takes over. This is of course without special
stress or break. Hope this is hopeful. Best,RCM.