LINGUIST List 10.1614

Wed Oct 27 1999

Qs: Markedness, Negative/Adjectives and Markedness

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  • Geraldine De Visscher, Markedness
  • dave gough, Negatives/Adjectives and Markedness

    Message 1: Markedness

     Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 15:33:05 +0100
    From: Geraldine De Visscher <Geraldine.De.Visschervub.ac.be>
    Subject: Markedness


    Hallo,

    I am a Belgian researcher at the VUB [Vrije Universiteit Brussel], Brussels. I have just started a PhD on the Efficacy of Explicit Instruction in Second Language Acquisition.I am now studying the influence of linguistic-typological and contrastive markedness of structures on the efficacy of instruction.I have already read several theoretical works on Markedness. But I still haven't found an operational definition for structural markedness.

    Does anybody have some suggestions? Thanks in advance

    G�raldine De Visscher

    Message 2: Negatives/Adjectives and Markedness

     Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 22:17:30 +0200
    From: dave gough <mcgeenetactive.co.za>
    Subject: Negatives/Adjectives and Markedness


    hi

    have got a couple of questions regarding negation of adjectives

    1. Are adjectives in predicative constructions such as ' I am not big' in other languages more, or, less marked for negation than verbs (if there is a difference e.g. marked prefixally for adjectives, but both prefixally and suffixally for verbs)?

    2. Are there languages out there in which the negative in adj structures such as 'I am not big' require a form of auxiliary support not required in the positive?

    3. Are there languages out there in which code mixed adjectives are treated quite specifically in their negation (different to other 'native' adjectives)?

    4. i work with a language (xhosa) in which one variant of the negative of adjectival predicates (e.g. I am not big) uses the past tense suffix of verbs as one of its (two) markers of negation on this form. Are there any languages out there that use a 'past' or 'perfective' tense form for this purpose too?

    THANKS

    DAVE GOUGH