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Information Structure, Discourse and Distribution of Referring Expressions in Chinese
Publisher
The University of Arizona.Rights
Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction, presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.Abstract
The distribution of referring expressions in Chinese is constrained by a number of definiteness restrictions (Chao 1968, Huang 1987, Chen 2004, among others). Following the universal given-before-new order of information structure (Clark and Clark 1977, Gundel 1988), preverbal NPs tend to represent old information and be definite, while postverbal NPs tend to represent new information and be indefinite (Chao 1968). However, there are phenomena that violate the definiteness restrictions. For example, Fan (1985) and Lee (1986) report that subjects modified by the indefinite determiner yi+CL (‘one’+classifier) are not rare in actual language use. Huang (1987), Li (1996) and Hu and Pan (2002) note definite postverbal NPs in existential sentences. The study conducts a systematic examination of the distribution of referring expressions in natural discourse data. I argue that the form and meaning of a NP are not only based on the prior context, but are related to the subsequent discourse as well. The choice of a nominal form is correlated with the continuity of the referent in discourse, depending on quantity of coding materials (Givón 1983, 1991, 1994, 2017). The continuity of a discourse participant is shaped by two dimensions of referential coherence: accessibility and persistence. The present study shows the significant role of persistence in three phenomena: the distribution of bare nouns, referential indefinite subjects marked by yi+CL, and existential yǒu-sentences with definite NPs. The first study asks when a bare form is selected. It is found that the distribution of bare nouns in discourse is not random but follows a distinct pattern: no matter whether a bare NP denotes a new or old entity, the referent is statistically less persistent than that of the full forms. Unlike indefinite NPs in existentials that frequently initiate topic chains, bare NPs do not normally occur in topic chains and exhibit low topicality. A bare form is used to serve the pragmatic function of representing a thematically unimportant entity. The second study examines factors licensing referential indefinite subjects. The data indicates that an indefinite subject is licensed by containing relative old information and the presence of modification. By containing some oldness, indefinite subjects satisfy the given-before-new order of information flow. Moreover, the data also shows that the occurrence of indefinite NPs in the subject position rather than a postverbal position is due to the non-important thematic status of the referent. Indefinite subjects often serve as the source of a quotation and supply background information. The third study investigates definite NPs in existential yǒu sentences. The data demonstrates that, unlike definite NPs in there-sentences (Ward and Birner 1995), definite post-yǒu NPs in Chinese can either represent hearer-new or hearer-old entities; nonetheless, the postverbal entities do not contain older information than subjects. Further, it is found that a yǒu sentence with a definite NP signals low thematic importance of the referent. Indefinite NPs in existentials tend to be important and occur in the initial position of a topic chain, but existentials with definite NPs are discontinuous in the subsequent discourse and consistently code background information. In summary, the three studies reveal two characteristics of referential choices. First, the given-before-new order of information structure is maintained in spite of the non-canonical referential choices. Second, the selection of a particular form/construction is to achieve special pragmatic functions, such as to indicate the level of topicality and the importance (persistence) of a referent. The studies provide a methodology to analyze non-canonical distribution of referential forms and they contribute to the understanding of referring expressions across languages.Type
textElectronic Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.Degree Level
doctoralDegree Program
Graduate CollegeEast Asian Studies