|
|
 E-mail this message to a friend
|
|
Title:
|
The English It-Cleft Construction: A role and reference grammar analysis
|
|
Author:
|
Emma Pavey
|
|
Email:
|
click here to access email
|
|
Degree Awarded:
|
University of Sussex
, Department of Linguistics
|
|
Degree Date:
|
2004
|
|
Linguistic Subfield(s):
|
Pragmatics
Semantics
Syntax
|
|
Subject Language(s):
|
English
|
|
Director(s):
|
Melanie Green
|
|
|
Abstract:
|
|
This dissertation gives a detailed examination of the it-cleft construction in English and proposes an analysis within a Role and Reference Grammar framework that links the syntactic, semantic and pragmatic characteristics of the construction. I argue that the specificational it-cleft construction, a bi-clausal syntactic structure with a largely unambiguous focus structure, can only be understood through examining the interaction of syntax, semantics and information structure that it entails. The non-derivational, integrated approach offered through Role and Reference Grammar provides a way of explaining and describing familial similarities between it-cleft constructions and other constructions without complex derivational processes. The analysis therefore enables a close and revealing comparison between the it-cleft and other cleft constructions (such as there-clefts and pseudoclefts), other copular sentences, and relative clause constructions.
The first four chapters of the dissertation constitute the foundational basis for the analytical chapters that follow. Chapter 2 provides a detailed description of key features of the it-cleft construction as a type of cleft construction and as a type of specificational copular construction. Chapter 3 critically examines current literature and previous studies concerning the it-cleft construction from a variety of theoretical perspectives and highlights key issues that arise. Chapter 4 gives an overview of all aspects of Role and Reference Grammar theory. Chapter 5 discusses the nature and function of the constituents of the it-cleft construction and the interaction between them in detail. This is done from a theory-neutral perspective, offering new insights into the characterization of these features, particularly in terms of the issues
that arise from the literature review. The it-cleft is analysed alongside other specificational constructions and relative clause constructions. These insights are then framed in Role and Reference Grammar terms in chapter 6, the analysis providing a clear and explanatory account of the construction. I also return to issues such as reflexivisation and the interaction of negation and information structure. Finally, chapter 7 contains a brief discussion on approaches to cross-linguistic comparison of the it-cleft construction.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Page Updated: 29-Nov-2009
Please report any bad links or misclassified data
LINGUIST Homepage | Read
LINGUIST | Contact us
While the LINGUIST List makes every effort to ensure the linguistic relevance of sites listed
on its pages, it cannot vouch for their contents.
|
|
