LINGUIST List 20.3620
Tue Oct 27 2009
Diss: Historical Ling/Text/Corpus Ling: Copple: 'A Diachronic Study...'
Editor for this issue: Di Wdzenczny
<dilinguistlist.org>
1. Mary
Copple,
A Diachronic Study of the Spanish Perfect(ive): Tracking the constraints on a grammaticalizing construction
Message 1: A Diachronic Study of the Spanish Perfect(ive): Tracking the constraints on a grammaticalizing construction
Date: 25-Oct-2009
From: Mary Copple <mcoppleksu.edu>
Subject: A Diachronic Study of the Spanish Perfect(ive): Tracking the constraints on a grammaticalizing construction
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Institution: University of New Mexico
Program: Spanish
Dissertation Status: Completed
Degree Date: 2009
Author: Mary T Copple
Dissertation Title: A Diachronic Study of the Spanish Perfect(ive): Tracking the constraints on a grammaticalizing construction
Linguistic Field(s):
Historical Linguistics
Text/Corpus Linguistics
Subject Language(s): Spanish (spa)
Dissertation Director:
Rena Torres Cacoullos
Dissertation Abstract:
The grammaticalization of perfects along the path from resultative toperfective has been much researched (Harris 1982, Bybee et al. 1994);however, debate continues about the inclusion of Stage II (continuativeperfects) and how extension to perfective contexts occurs (Squartini andBertinetto 1995, 2000). In some varieties of contemporary PeninsularSpanish, the Present Perfect (PP) competes with the Preterit for use inperfective contexts, and now exhibits advanced grammaticalization as it iswell established in Hodiernal temporal reference (Schwenter 1994b, Serrano1994). Furthermore, comparision of variation patterns in Peninsular andMexican Spanish suggests that indeterminate temporal reference (perfective,but not temporally specified) is the context most susceptible to furtherperfective grammaticalization (Schwenter and Torres Cacoullos 2008). Thisstudy examines PP grammaticalization from a diachronic, variationistperspective. PP and Preterit data from three different centuries (15th,17th, and 19th) are drawn from dramatic texts in order to define thecontexts of use for the two competing forms and the linguistic factors thatconstrained the variation.
In the 15th century, the PP is characterized as a resultative/emergingperfect. At this early stage, in Immediately Preceding temporal referencecontexts the PP has developed a 'hot news' function, while extension toIrrelevant and Indeterminate temporal reference contexts is concentrated insemantic classes associated with resultative use. In the 17th century, thePP truly becomes established as a perfect, extending to all semantic verbclasses in Irrelevant temporal reference contexts, with an accompanyingrise in frequency relative to the Preterit. The PP also extends its use inIndeterminate contexts, and those contexts are selected as favorable in theVariable Rule Analysis for the 17th century. In the 19th century,Hodiernal contexts favor selection of the PP as the form continues itsextension into perfective and temporally specified contexts.
It is concluded that the non-specified temporal reference contexts play aspecial role in the PP's grammaticalization: the Irrelevant PP functionhelps to solidify the event focus of the 'hot news' perfect, while theIndeterminate function relaxes the restrictions of current relevance bystrengthening the PP's association with perfectivity.
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