9.615, Qs: Part of Speech,Cluster Reduction,Scope,Metaphor

[LINGUIST Network]

LINGUIST List:  Vol-9-615. Sun Apr 26 1998. ISSN: 1068-4875.

Subject: 9.615, Qs: Part of Speech,Cluster Reduction,Scope,Metaphor

Moderators: Anthony Rodrigues Aristar: Texas A&M U. <aristar at linguistlist.org>
            Helen Dry: Eastern Michigan U. <hdry at linguistlist.org>

Review Editor:     Andrew Carnie <carnie at linguistlist.org>

Editors:  	    Brett Churchill <brett at linguistlist.org>
		    Martin Jacobsen <marty at linguistlist.org>
		    Elaine Halleck <elaine at linguistlist.org>
                    Anita Huang <anita at linguistlist.org>
                    Ljuba Veselinova <ljuba at linguistlist.org>
		    Julie Wilson <julie at linguistlist.org>

Software development: John H. Remmers <remmers at emunix.emich.edu>
                      Zhiping Zheng <zzheng at online.emich.edu>

Home Page:  http://linguistlist.org/


Editor for this issue: Martin Jacobsen <marty at linguistlist.org>
 ==========================================================================

We'd like to remind readers that the responses to queries are usually
best posted to the individual asking the question. That individual is
then  strongly encouraged to post a summary to the list.   This policy was
instituted to help control the huge volume of mail on LINGUIST; so we
would appreciate your cooperating with it whenever it seems appropriate.

=================================Directory=================================

1)
Date:  Fri, 24 Apr 1998 17:10:48 +0800 (SST)
From:  Ji Donghong <dhji at krdl.org.sg>
Subject:  What's behind Part-of-speech?

2)
Date:  Fri, 24 Apr 1998 14:16:04 -0400
From:  MARC PICARD <picard at vax2.concordia.ca>
Subject:  Cluster Reduction

3)
Date:  Sat, 25 Apr 1998 23:30:46 +0900
From:  Eung-Cheon Hah <echeon at interpia.net>
Subject:  Scope

4)
Date:  Sat, 25 Apr 1998 12:08:23 +1200
From:  thomas.li at stonebow.otago.ac.nz (Thomas Li)
Subject:  Metaphor

-------------------------------- Message 1 -------------------------------

Date:  Fri, 24 Apr 1998 17:10:48 +0800 (SST)
From:  Ji Donghong <dhji at krdl.org.sg>
Subject:  What's behind Part-of-speech?


In Chinese, there are fewer affixes for us to classfy words into
categories, e.g., nouns, verbs or adjectives, etc., so even up to now,
there has been no information about POS for Chinese words in the most
famous Chinese dictionary, i.e., Mordern Chinese Dictionary. Some
linguists proposed that Chiense words be classified as nouns, verbs,
adjectives, etc. completely based on their grammartical distribution,
which they refered to as their ability to combine with other words.
My questions are:

1) Can such grammartical distribution be solely used as a means to
     determine POS of words?

2) Are there any similar problems in other languages? and how to solve
     the problem there?

Any comments or information would be greatly appreciated. I will
summarize if there is enough interest.

 Ji Donghong
 Kent Ridge Digital Labs
 Email: dhji at krdl.org.sg


-------------------------------- Message 2 -------------------------------

Date:  Fri, 24 Apr 1998 14:16:04 -0400
From:  MARC PICARD <picard at vax2.concordia.ca>
Subject:  Cluster Reduction

Does anybody recall ever coming across a case of
final-consonant-cluster reduction where its application systematically
depended on the quality or quantity of the preceding vowel, i.e.,
where -V1CC# > -V1C# but -V2CC# > -V2CC# (and where V1 and V2 are
vowels that differ in some property like height, frontness, length,
etc)?

If so, please send me any references and/or data, and I'll post
a summary.

Marc Picard


-------------------------------- Message 3 -------------------------------

Date:  Sat, 25 Apr 1998 23:30:46 +0900
From:  Eung-Cheon Hah <echeon at interpia.net>
Subject:  Scope


I'm currently investigaing scope phenomena in English. Your intuitive
judgement on the following sentences would be gratly appreciated. If
the sentence is ambiguous, marginally ambiguous, or unambiguous
between the relevant scope-bearing elements given in the parenthesis,
please mark it with (+A), (mA), or (-A), respectively. I assume that
all the scope-bearing elements receive neutral stress.


*********************************************************************

1. Someone doesn't love everyone.
	(between 'someone' and 'everyone')

2. Someone doesn't love John.
	(between 'someone' and 'not')

3. I expected someone not to have arrived.
	(between 'someone' and 'not')

4. I expected everyone not to have arrived.
	(between 'everyone' and 'not)

5. I expected someone not to like everyone.
	(between 'someone' and 'everyone')

6. I expected someone to like everyone.
        (between 'someone' and 'everyone')

*********************************************************

I will post a summary after I get enough responses for the purpose.

Best wishes,

Eung-Cheon Hah


-------------------------------- Message 4 -------------------------------

Date:  Sat, 25 Apr 1998 12:08:23 +1200
From:  thomas.li at stonebow.otago.ac.nz (Thomas Li)
Subject:  Metaphor

I've hopelessly fallen in love with "Metaphor", and prepare to do
research, or rather Ph.D dissertation within the field of:

       "Metaphors Chinese Live By"
       "Metaphors Chinese Political Leaders Live By"
       "Metaphors Chinese Businessmen Live By"
       "Metaphors Chinese.............Live By"
       "The Metaphorical Structure of Zhou Yi
		(The Book of Changes)"

So I humbly make a request to each distinguished linguist:

Is there anyone doing the same thing? Could you offer me some
reference?


Thomas Lee (Li Fu Yin)
Linguistic Section
School of languages
University of Otago
Po Box 56
Dunedin
New Zealand

Fax: (64)-3-479-8689
Home Phone:(64)-3-477-8161
e-mail:thomas.li at stonebow.otago.ac.nz

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINGUIST List: Vol-9-615