Query Details
| Query Subject: |
Coordination and plural
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| Author: | Jacques Rollin | |
| Submitter Email: | click here to access email | |
| Linguistic LingField(s): |
Semantics
Sociolinguistics |
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| Query: |
Dear Linguists
I am trying to gather some information on how compared items (adjectival or adverbial) may (typically) be intensified in different languages, preferably from different language families (my knowledge limits here to Germanic, with the exception of Finnish). The phenomenon can be illustrated with following equivalent expressions in English, German, Swedish and Finnish with a normal (a) and an intensified (b) comparative (note the SGML codes for national characters): 1. a. The train went faster. b. The train went ever faster. (Possibly also: all the faster?) 2. a. Der Zug wurde schneller. b. Der Zug wurde immer schneller. 3. a. Ta'get gick fortare. (a' =3D å) b. Ta'get gick allt fortare. 4. a. Juna meni lujempaa. b. Juna meni yha'' lujempaa. (Possibly also: aina lujempaa) (a'' =3D ä) The comparative intensifier, e.g. EVER in English, is in all these cases some kind of an all-quantifier (or universal quantifier), and they also seem to relate to the temporal domain communicating ca 'always' (Well, Swedish is here less transparent as regards temporality). I would like to know if this is a general pattern cross-linguistically. How often are ''all-expressions'', e.g. ALL THE TIME/WAY, ALWAYS etc., used as intensifiers of the comparative in the languages of the world? Perhaps You fellow Listers would like to provide me with examples from your own language(s) for starters. I would also appreciate literary pointers to some introductory work on ''universal quantification'' in general (please, not too philosophical!). Of course, I will summarize if there is enough interest. Jan K. Lindstr=F6m=09=09 Assistant Scandinavian Languages and Literature P.O. Box 4=09=09=09 FIN-00014 Helsinki University=09 |
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| LL Issue: | 8.758 | |
| Date posted: | 20-May-1997 | |
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