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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Dear Randy</span>，</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> As you mentioned earlier, quote
</span>“<span lang="EN-GB">If you agree with Chao (and L</span>ü<span lang="EN-GB"> Shuxiang, and me) that Mandarin is topic-comment, not subject-predicate, there is no </span>“<span lang="EN-GB">basic AVP</span>”<span lang="EN-GB"> order. As Chao said, all
clauses are topic comment, though in some cases there is no topic.</span>“</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> Li Chao and I can't help but ponder on this matter, which leads us to question if we have misunderstood your point. If that's the case, we apologize sincerely.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Regards,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Jianming</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">(Many thanks for your works as always)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Sent from <a href="https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986">
Mail</a> for Windows</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:SimSun"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="border:none;padding:0cm"><b><span lang="EN-GB">From: </span>
</b><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="mailto:randy.lapolla@gmail.com">Randy J. LaPolla</a><br>
<b>Sent: </b>2023</span>年<span lang="EN-GB">9</span>月<span lang="EN-GB">2</span>日<span lang="EN-GB"> 20:00<br>
<b>To: </b><a href="mailto:wu.jianming2011@hotmail.com">Wu Jianming</a><br>
<b>Cc: </b><a href="mailto:gil@shh.mpg.de">David Gil</a>; <a href="mailto:lingtyp@listserv.linguistlist.org">
LINGTYP@listserv.linguistlist.org</a><br>
<b>Subject: </b>Re: [Lingtyp] argument structure</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:SimSun"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Hi Jianming,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I wish you would read my papers and stop saying I am arguing that Chinese is solely topic-comment.</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">All the best,</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Randy</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">——</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Professor Randy J. LaPolla</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black">（罗仁地</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:black">)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">,
PhD FAHA </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Center for Language Sciences</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">A302, Muduo Building, #18 Jinfeng Road, Zhuhai City, Guangdong, China</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black"><a href="https://randylapolla.info">https://randylapolla.info</a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black">ORCID ID:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#494A4C;background:white"><a href="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6100-6196">https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6100-6196</a> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black">
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black">邮编：<span lang="EN-GB">519087<br>
</span>广东省珠海市唐家湾镇金凤路<span lang="EN-GB">18</span>号木铎楼<span lang="EN-GB">A302<br>
</span>北京师范大学珠海校区<span lang="EN-GB"><br>
</span>人文和社会科学高等研究院<span lang="EN-GB"><br>
</span>语言科学研究中心<span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">On 2 Sep 2023, at 12:16 PM, Wu Jianming <wu.jianming2011@hotmail.com> wrote:</span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Hi Randy</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">，<span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> As I always mentioned, the topic-comment and SVO structures can coexist in Chinese language and they are differently-oriented. However,
when you emphasize a topic-comment approach only, you may potentially udnerestimate the underlying logic and semantics that play a crucial role in accurately interpreting and expressing Chinese ideas.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Cambria",serif"> (</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">There
was a reason why Romans borrowed<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">grammatik</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Cambria",serif">ḗ</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">
and word classes from Greeks).</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> When you mention<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">a
fixed AVP structure</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">, I suppose you mentioned the coginitvie structure. Yet it is of course fixed. The encoding of human language always tends to preserve cognitive experience
as much as possible (Giv</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">ó</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">n 1985:189). In the sentences<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>我喝咖啡<span lang="EN-GB">" (I drink coffee),<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">"</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">一锅饭吃十个人</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">"
(One pot of rice feeds ten people) and "</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">这匹马骑过许多人</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">" (this horse has been ridden by many people), The differentiation of semantic roles on either side of the verb is a functional
similarity found in other languages with agreement or case markers. While this evidence may seem insignificant, it provides a formal basis for such means of differentiation, esp. in the isolating languages.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> However, the latter two sentences of PVA order are barely encountered in corpora or everyday language use (almost none). And they
can not be used to show that Chinese is solely topic-comment. I think it is not right to prioritize a single framework over others in all circumstances.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Regards,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Jianming Wu</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Institute of Linguistics</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Shanghai International Studies University</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Windows<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">版</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986"><span lang="EN-GB"><span lang="EN-GB">邮件</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">发送<span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt">发件人</span></b><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:randy.lapolla@gmail.com">Randy
J. LaPolla</a><br>
</span><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt">发送时间</span></b><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">2023</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">年</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">9</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">月</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">1</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">日</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">10:11<br>
</span><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt">收件人</span></b><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:wu.jianming2011@hotmail.com">Wu Jianming</a><br>
</span><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt">抄送</span></b><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:gil@shh.mpg.de">David Gil</a>;<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="mailto:lingtyp@listserv.linguistlist.org">LINGTYP@listserv.linguistlist.org</a><br>
</span><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt">主题</span></b><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Re: [Lingtyp] argument structure</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Hi Jianming,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">If you use examples like<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>‘<span lang="EN-US">I drink coffee</span>’<span lang="EN-US">, of course the animate referent will be seen as the actor, but this is not evidence
for</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">You say </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">" In addition, text frequency counts on word order patterns alone may provide an inaccurate understanding of word order in Mandarin Chinese, as word order can be influenced by discourse-pragmatic factors and cognitive-semantic
considerations</span>”<span lang="EN-US">,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">but you cannot disregard discourse-pragmatic and cognitive-semantic considerations. If they can change the understanding of N V N</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">’</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">clauses,
then it means there is no syntactic constraint on the interpretation of the clause. Also, this is very much a matter of natural data, not made-up sentences, so frequency counts also can</span><span style="font-size:10.5pt">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">t
be discounted.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> This order reflects the typical conceptual structure of events where there is an agent performing an action on an object or patient.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">The fact that actors are more often topics is well-known, and this can of course influence the interpretation, but whether a language has grammaticalised syntactic constraints on the interpretation of the roles of referents
has to be shown. You have given examples that show there is clearly not a grammaticalised constraint on the interpretation of the roles of referents, as the nature of the referent overrides the tendency for the actor to be topic.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">All the best,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Randy</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt">——<span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Professor Randy J. LaPolla</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt">（罗仁地</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">)</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">,
PhD FAHA </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Center for Language Sciences</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt">A302, Muduo Building, #18 Jinfeng Road, Zhuhai City, Guangdong, China</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://randylapolla.info/">https://randylapolla.info</a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">ORCID ID:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6100-6196"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;background:white">https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6100-6196</span></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#494A4C;background:white"> </span><span lang="EN-US">
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.5pt">邮编：</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:11.5pt">519087<br>
</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt">广东省珠海市唐家湾镇金凤路</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:11.5pt">18</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt">号木铎楼</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:11.5pt">A302<br>
</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt">北京师范大学珠海校区</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:11.5pt"><br>
</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt">人文和社会科学高等研究院</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:11.5pt"><br>
</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt">语言科学研究中心</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:11.5pt"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><br>
<br>
<br>
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt">
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">On 25 Aug 2023, at 8:37 PM, Wu Jianming <<a href="mailto:wu.jianming2011@hotmail.com">wu.jianming2011@hotmail.com</a>> wrote:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Dear David and colleagues</span>，<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> The N-V-N structure in Mandarin is indeed used for transitive encodings (or<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>“<b><span lang="EN-GB">formal concept</span></b>”<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">in
Martin</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">s term). In this structure, the verb is placed between two nouns (N1-V-N2), representing the action being performed on the object. For example, consider the sentence "</span>我喝咖啡<span lang="EN-GB">" (w</span>ǒ<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">h</span>ē<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">k</span>ā<span lang="EN-GB">f</span>ē<span lang="EN-GB">i),
which means "I drink coffee." This structure allows for a concise and clear way of expressing transitive actions in Mandarin.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> However, for the sake of discourse continuity and conciseness, the same N-V-N structure or transitive encodings can be used in :<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>一锅饭吃十个人<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">y</span>ī<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">gu</span>ō<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">f</span>à<span lang="EN-GB">n
ch</span>ī<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">sh</span>í<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">g</span>è<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">r</span>é<span lang="EN-GB">n,
Literal Translation: One pot of rice eat ten people; Better Translation: One pot of rice feeds ten people. Or<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>这匹马骑过许多人<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">zh</span>è<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">p</span>ǐ<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">m</span>ǎ<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">q</span>í<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">le
x</span>ǔ<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">du</span>ō<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">r</span>é<span lang="EN-GB">n; Literal Translation: This horse
rode many people; Better Translation: Many people have ridden this horse. The direct translation of the two sentences might not capture the intended meaning efficiently. It is also particularly used when the emphasis is on the action and its direct object,
rather than on the subject.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> When Mandarin speakers are asked to describe the propositional meanings of the two sentences, they use the canonical SVO/AVP order, because the SVO/AVP word order in Mandarin Chinese reflects a cognitive-semantic
iconicity that aligns with the sequence of transitive events in real-world situations. This canonical word order is often used to ensure accurate and natural communication of the intended meaning<b>. In other words , A and P, as semantic roles, can never
be symmetric but always asymmetric in cognition (but not in surface forms).</b> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> In addition, text frequency counts on word order patterns alone may provide an inaccurate understanding of word order in Mandarin Chinese, as word order can be influenced by discourse-pragmatic factors and cognitive-semantic
considerations. But they are not the same things. The basic AVP (agent-verb-patient) order in Mandarin Chinese is often aligned or sequenced with prototypical transitive events in the conceptualized world. This order reflects the typical conceptual structure
of events where there is an agent performing an action on an object or patient.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> Therefore, in my view, while Mandarin Chinese does have some flexibility in word order, it is not completely free.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Best,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Jianming</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Sent from<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">Mail</span></a></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">for
Windows</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="border:none;border-top:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0cm 0cm 0cm;border-color:currentcolor currentcolor;border-image: none">
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">From:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:gil@shh.mpg.de"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">David Gil</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB"><br>
<b>Sent:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>2023</span>年<span lang="EN-GB">8</span>月<span lang="EN-GB">25</span>日<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">17:20<br>
<b>To:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:LINGTYP@listserv.linguistlist.org"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">LINGTYP@listserv.linguistlist.org</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB"><br>
<b>Subject:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>Re: [Lingtyp] argument structure</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Dear all,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Some additional data: In my ongoing cross-linguistic Association Experiment, I tested 4 sentences of N V N structure to see if they permitted Pat V Ag interpretations, in (among
others) three Sinitic varieties. (Of these 4 sentences, 2 were semantically symmetric while 2 were asymmetric.) For each variety I tested approximately 30 subjects. The availability of such Pat V Ag interpretations was as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Mandarin (Beijing): 8%<br>
</span><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Meiryo",sans-serif">
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Cantonese (HK): 7%</span><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Meiryo",sans-serif">
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"><br>
Mandarin (overseas Chinese, Jakarta): 18%<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">What these results show is that while there is a strong disfavouring of Pat V Ag interpretations in such constructions, they are nevertheless available.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Best,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">David<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">On 23/08/2023 18:24, Chao Li wrote:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt">
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<div id="m_-197487478029998947m_-3494078813807167779gmail-:36m">
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Dear Randy,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">You have cited Y. R. Chao a few times and apparently you adopt the position that Chinese can be sufficiently explained with the notions of topic and comment. I do not think that anyone working on Chinese would deny the
importance of the notions of topic and comment in describing and explaining the functioning of Chinese. Also, probably no one working on Chinese would deny the fact that Chinese exhibits flexibility in word order, as shown by the examples you cited in your
messages. However, IF your position is that Chinese (essentially) has no argument structure or that word order has no place in Chinese grammar, Jianming (as can be seen from his earlier discussion with you), I, and very likely many others would think that
this position is too extreme. Word order (and argument structure) actually has an important place in Chinese grammar. Otherwise, why (1) has to be interpreted as "the cat is/was chasing the dog" (even though in the real world cats are timid and it is more
likely for a dog to chase a cat than for a cat to chase a dog), why (2b) is odd or bad (particularly when previous clauses in the same Chinese sentence, as can be viewed by clicking on the link, remain unchanged), or why 'that girl' in (3), not '(the) flower'
or 'flowers' in the same sentence, has to be understood as the entity that was consumed? All the three examples contain a transitive verb and in spirit they are all of the "N-V-N</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">" format. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">(1) M</span>ā<span lang="EN-GB">o z</span>à<span lang="EN-GB">i zhu</span>ī<span lang="EN-GB"> g</span>ǒ<span lang="EN-GB">u. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> cat Progressive chase dog</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> 'The cat is/was chasing the dog.'</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">(2) a. ... w</span>ǒ<span lang="EN-GB"> h</span>ē<span lang="EN-GB">-le n</span>à<span lang="EN-GB"> b</span>ē<span lang="EN-GB">i gu</span>ǒ<span lang="EN-GB">zh</span>ī<span lang="EN-GB">. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> I drink-Perfective that cup juice</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> '...I drank that cup of juice.' (</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://cn.nytimes.com/style/20170209/the-stir-fried-tomatoes-and-eggs-my-chinese-mother-made/zh-hant/" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">https://cn.nytimes.com/style/20170209/the-stir-fried-tomatoes-and-eggs-my-chinese-mother-made/zh-hant/</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB">)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> b. ??... n</span>à<span lang="EN-GB"> b</span>ē<span lang="EN-GB">i gu</span>ǒ<span lang="EN-GB">zh</span>ī<span lang="EN-GB"> h</span>ē<span lang="EN-GB">-le w</span>ǒ<span lang="EN-GB">. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> that cup juice drink-Perfective I</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">(3) Hu</span>ā<span lang="EN-GB"> ch</span>ī<span lang="EN-GB">-le n</span>à<span lang="EN-GB"> n</span>ǚ<span lang="EN-GB">h</span>á<span lang="EN-GB">i. (name of a movie)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> flower eat-Perfective that girl</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Best regards,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Chao</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">On Tue, Aug 22, 2023 at 11:52</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> </span><span lang="EN-GB">PM Randy LaPolla <</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:randy.lapolla@gmail.com" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">randy.lapolla@gmail.com</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB">>
wrote:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Thanks Christian,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Chao</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">s point in using the analogy of the function in logic is just to explain how the position of reference phrases in the clause is not related to semantic role, as it is in English, so N-V-N</span>’<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">(actually
[Topic N]-[Comment V-N</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">]) can be almost any set of semantic roles, depending only on contextual factors for their interpretation, as long as the addressee can create a meaning from it. The examples I gave are only a few of the possibilities.
This is also why he argued there is no passive/active distinction in Chinese. It is a matter of inferring the direction of action from the overall context/situation. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span lang="EN-GB">It is common now for us to assign roles to positions of arguments of functions, but Chao was assuming (explicitly) that the order of the arguments of the function does not influence the interpretation. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">All the best,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Randy </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span lang="EN-GB">On 23 Aug 2023, at 9:44 AM, Christian Lehmann <</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:christian.lehmann@uni-erfurt.de" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">christian.lehmann@uni-erfurt.de</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB">>
wrote:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"></span><span lang="EN-GB">Hi Randy,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">thanks for this report. There would be no point in criticizing Chao, doubtless an eminent grammarian. However, it does not seem that his use of the term 'argument' throws much light
on Mandarin grammar. Given your examples, nothing, of course, prevents you from defining a function die(x, y) such that x is a being touched by the death and y is the dying being. You then get a multiplicity of functions die(v,w), where v and w play different
roles. I am not sure that this use of the word 'argument' helps in understanding how the Chinese constructions work. - On the other hand, the analysis in terms of topic and comment seems to have gained foot in the literature. It does not seem to necessarily
involve the function-argument analysis.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Best, Christian<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Am 22.08.2023 um 18:52 schrieb Randy J. LaPolla:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Hi Christian,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Y. R. Chao argued that the arguments in Chinese are like the arguments of a mathematical function. He argued (1968:69-70) that Chinese clause structure is simply topic and comment, and<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>“<span lang="EN-US">A
corollary to the topic-comment nature of predication is that the direction of action in an action verb in the predicate need not go outward from subject to object. Even in an N-V-N</span>´<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US">sequence,
such as [go</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">̌</span><span lang="EN-US">u ya</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">̌</span><span lang="EN-US">o rén (dog bite man)], it is not always certain
that the action goes outward from N to N</span>´<span lang="EN-US">.</span>”<span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US">(1968: 70). </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Chao (1955, 1959) also argued that word order is not determined by, and does not affect the interpretation of actor vs. non-actor; he said the clause is analogous to a function
in logic: the argument is an argument of the function, and the truth value is unaffected by its position in the clause (1959:254). </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">He used the terms<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">subject</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">for
the topic and</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">object</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> for
a reference phrase (regardless of the semantic role of the referent in the event), as in Chinese many sorts of semantic roles can appear after the verb (e.g. 'I eat rice</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">I
eat restaurant</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">, 'I eat big bowl</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">,'
I eat chopsticks</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">, 'this pot of rice eats ten people (can feed ten people),<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">He
died father</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">= 'he suffered the event of his father dying</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">,'
fall rain CHANGE OF STATE</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">=
It is raining</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">. In all of these cases he would call the postverbal reference phrase the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">object</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Chao Yuen Ren. 1955[1976]. Notes on Chinese grammar and logic. In <i>Aspects of Chinese sociolinguistics: Essays by Yuen Ren Chao,</i> Anwar S. Dil (ed.), 237-249. Stanford: Stanford University Press.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Chao Yuen Ren. 1959[1976]. How Chinese logic operates. In <i>Aspects of Chinese sociolinguistics: Essays by Yuen Ren Chao,</i> Anwar S. Dil (ed.), 250 259. Stanford: Stanford University Press. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Chao Yuen Ren. 1968. <i>A grammar of spoken Chinese</i>. Berkeley/Los Angeles: University of California Press.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">All the best,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Randy</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">——<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Professor Randy J. LaPolla</span>（罗仁地<span lang="EN-GB">), PhD FAHA </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Center for Language Sciences</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">A302, Muduo Building, #18 Jinfeng Road, Zhuhai City, Guangdong, China</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://randylapolla.info/" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">https://randylapolla.info</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">ORCID ID: </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6100-6196" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6100-6196</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB">
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">邮编：<span lang="EN-GB">519087<br>
</span>广东省珠海市唐家湾镇金凤路<span lang="EN-GB">18</span>号木铎楼<span lang="EN-GB">A302<br>
</span>北京师范大学珠海校区<span lang="EN-GB"><br>
</span>人文和社会科学高等研究院<span lang="EN-GB"><br>
</span>语言科学研究中心<span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">On 22 Aug 2023, at 11:19 PM, Christian Lehmann</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:christian.lehmann@uni-erfurt.de" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt"><christian.lehmann@uni-erfurt.de></span></a></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></span><span lang="EN-GB">wrote:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">I am sure that what I am about to do here is completely inappropriate on this list. In the interest of improving communication among us, allow me nevertheless to use the message
by Hans Götzsche as support: If you think you need to use the (mathematical and logical) term 'argument' in a context dealing with grammar, then please at least make it clear whether an argument occupies a role in semantic relationality or a syntactic function
in valency. Just one example: English<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>dine</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>has two semantic roles, the eater and the thing eaten (which may be called, i.a., agent and patient). It has one dependent
controlled by its valency, taking the form of a subject and representing the eater. How many arguments does it have?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Am 21.08.2023 um 08:03 schrieb Hans Götzsche:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Begin forwarded message:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">From:</span></b><span lang="EN-GB">Hans Götzsche<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:goetzsche@ikp.aau.dk" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt"><goetzsche@ikp.aau.dk></span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">Subject: Re: [Lingtyp] argument structure</span></b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">Date:</span></b><span lang="EN-GB">21 August 2023 at 15.44.46 CEST</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">To:</span></b><span lang="EN-GB">Vladimir Panov<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:panovmeister@gmail.com" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt"><panovmeister@gmail.com></span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Dear Vladimir,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">allow me a late comment. I have no remarks on Christian Lehman</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">s comment, so I shall only mention that the notion of<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>‘<span lang="EN-GB">argument</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">in
theoretical linguistics has, to my knowledge,</span>‘<span lang="EN-GB">slipped through the back door</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">, via formal approaches, from mathematics, presumably 1865 (see *), and later computation theory; meaning</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">An independent variable of a function.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I first encountered the technical use of the word<i>argument</i>at my<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>‘<span lang="EN-GB">first course in formal logic</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">(many years ago), and
the use of the term in linguistics is one of the reasons why I decided to develop</span>‘<span lang="EN-GB">my own</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">nomenclature in formal syntax. As is well known the way we, as linguists, use the myriad of technical terms depends
on what club (guild, brotherhood, you choose) we are members of, and taken as a set of words covering all bits and pieces of (by some called)<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>“<span lang="EN-GB">the language sciences</span>”<span lang="EN-GB">the
set is full of inconsistences, and sometimes contradictions. Thus, it is not quite true that</span>“<span lang="EN-GB">we all use the term<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>“<span lang="EN-GB">argument structure</span>””<span lang="EN-GB">,
and I only use the word<i>argument</i>in the context of formal logic. The aim of my development mentioned above, which was published in</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">Deviational Syntactic Structures</span></b>†<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">was to establish a nomenclature that was both consistent and would be able to cover all language domains, from speech sounds to semantics (but, so far, not pragmatics; which I prefer to see as a matter of cultural codifications).
This was in line with the well known and acknowledged Danish tradition in Theoretical Linguistics (some scholars remember Rasmus Rask and Karl Verner, to name a few) and it was based on ideas by Otto Jespersen and Louis Hjelmslev<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>–<span lang="EN-GB">as
for the formal systems</span>–<span lang="EN-GB">and the empirical achievements of the grammarian Paul Diderichsen. My suggestions were not all cheered by Danish linguistists, but the formal system</span>–<span lang="EN-GB">comparable to, e.g., Montague grammar<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>–<span lang="EN-GB">was
the first and only amalgamation of Hjelmslev</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">s<i>Glossematics</i>and the descriptive tradition of Danish syntax.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I once read a</span>‘<span lang="EN-GB">Dear Sir</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">letter to a Danish newspaper in which the writer offered the opinion (in translation):</span>“<span lang="EN-GB">why don</span>’<span lang="EN-GB">t
everybody use words the way I do; it would make everything much easier</span>”<span lang="EN-GB">. But, of course, adopting such a view would be impertinent.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Best wishes,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Hans Götzsche (MA,PhD)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Former President, NAL</span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Nordic Association of Linguists</span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Emeritus Associate Professor</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Director, Center for Linguistics</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Aalborg University</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Rendsburggade 14</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">9000 Aalborg</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">DENMARK</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:goetzsche@ikp.aau.dk" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">goetzsche@ikp.aau.dk</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="http://www.cfl.hum.aau/" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">www.cfl.hum.aau</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Dr Hans Goetzsche</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Emerito Professore Universitario</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Via S. Apollinare 19,2</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">36063 Marostica (VI)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">ITALIA</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">*</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/144141/what-is-the-sense-of-using-word-argument-for-inputs-of-a-function" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/144141/what-is-the-sense-of-using-word-argument-for-inputs-of-a-function</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/144141/what-is-the-sense-of-using-word-argument-for-inputs-of-a-function" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">terminology
- What is the sense of using word "argument", for inputs of a function? - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal">†<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/deviational-syntactic-structures-9781472587961/" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt">https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/deviational-syntactic-structures-9781472587961/</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<blockquote style="margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt">
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">On 19 Aug 2023, at 12.11, Vladimir Panov</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:10.5pt"><a href="mailto:panovmeister@gmail.com" target="_blank"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:11.0pt"><panovmeister@gmail.com></span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB">wrote:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Dear colleagues,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I have a very general question to you. We all use the term "argument structure" and we are used to semantic labels like A, S or P or syntactic labels like subject, direct and indirect object. Many linguistis, especially
those adhering to "formal" approaches, would argue that there are also adjuncts which are not arguments.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Is anybody aware of any attempts to seriously challenge the adequacy of the very notion of "arguments" in general? After all, ir seems that there are languages which do not encode or encode little the "roles" of named
entities (noun phrases, pronouns etc.) anywhere in utterance, especially in colloquial language, or encode entities like the addressee rather than the agent or the patient. My intuition tells me that there might be such critical works in the traditions of
usage-based linguistics, interactional linguistics, conversation analysis or linguistic anthropology but I have found very little. Actually, I've only discovered the very recent Heine's book in which he argues for a broader understanding of argument structure
which includes speech situation participants - a very interestinng view. So am looking for more research in this spirit.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I'm sorry if it sounds a bit confusing but if anything like that comes to you mind I'll be happy if you can share it.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Best,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Vladimir Panov</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN-GB">I condemn the Russian agression in Ukraine</span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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</blockquote>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span lang="EN-GB"><br>
<br>
<br>
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">_______________________________________________</span></pre>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">--</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Prof. em. Dr. Christian Lehmann<br>
Rudolfstr. 4<br>
99092 Erfurt<br>
Deutschland<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="0" cellpadding="0">
<tbody>
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<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Tel.:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">+49/361/2113417</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">E-Post:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Web:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">--</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Prof. em. Dr. Christian Lehmann<br>
Rudolfstr. 4<br>
99092 Erfurt<br>
Deutschland<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Tel.:</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">+49/361/2113417</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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</blockquote>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">-- </span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">David Gil</span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">Senior Scientist (Associate)</span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">Department of Linguistic and Cultural Evolution</span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology</span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig, 04103, Germany</span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">Email: </span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="mailto:gil@shh.mpg.de"><span lang="EN-GB">gil@shh.mpg.de</span></a></span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">Mobile Phone (Israel): +972-526117713</span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB">Mobile Phone (Indonesia): +62-082113720302</span></pre>
<pre><span lang="EN-GB"> </span></pre>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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