Transcript Metaphorical extension between speech and thought

授課老師：蘇以文
I-wen Su
【本著作除另有註明外，採取創用CC「姓名標示
－非商業性－相同方式分享」台灣3.0版授權釋出】
The “Work” under the Creative Commons
Taiwan 3.0 License of “BY-NC-SA”.


One and inseparable from each other
 Wilhelm von Humboldt (1836)
Humboldt, W. von. 1836.
Language is the formative organ of
thought
Tarzan Pronoun
Linus Van Pelt and Snoopy.
Huang (1982):
The occurrence of saying verbs after
mental verbs such as xiangxin, juede, or
xiwang, demonstrates the homogeneity
of speech and thought, which is a
widespread phenomenon that
encompasses all major Chinese dialects.
Vygotsky (1962)
Speech as a position often deemed
responsible for the cross-linguistically
similar morphosyntactic behavior between
mental verbs and verbs of saying.

1. “Meanings based in the external described
situation > meanings based in the internal described
situation.”

2. “Meanings based in the external or internal
described situation > meanings based in the textual
and metalinguistic situation.”

3. “Meanings tend to become increasingly based in
the speaker's subjective belief state/attitude toward
the proposition.”
 Shuo 說 as a verb: From Speech to Thought
1.
a). to speak with mouth
b). faculty
c). to talk
d). to gossip
口說無憑
能說善道
談天說地
說東道西
a). to tell
b). to preach
說故事
現身說法
2
3.a). to pursuade
b). to scold
動之以情，說之以理
爸爸說了我一句
4. to view
管人家怎麼說我
5. to judge
這件事很難說
6.
to explain
舉例來說
7.
to think
他在心裡說(=想)
8.
to mean
這句話是說
Mandarin shou: Its Path of Semantic Change
Propositional
Textual
<dynamic>
<deontic>
X說
Matrix verb
Expressive
<weak epistemic>
講說
serialization
reanalysis
<strong epistemic>
寫說.想說.覺得說
metaphor
analogy
V shou
I
Expressive
II (a)
Inner state
III (a)
如果說,雖然說,除非說
pragmatic inference
analogy
Connector marker
IV
pragmatic inference
analogy
S-final complementizer
我覺得徐淑媛好可憐說
III (b)
reanalysis
reanalysis
S-final particle
III (c)
NTU 蘇以文
pragmatic inference
reanalysis
Counter-expectation marker
Hearsay, reportative
II (b)
我聽人家說過,說你有個女兒
III (d)
給她人權,給她保障,說是民主
這家麵包店的西點很好吃說

syntactically.
◦ it can co-occur with modal verbs or aspect markers
◦ it must take either a nominal argument, including
sentential object, or an adverbial complement






Reanalysis
Serialization
Metaphor
Metonymy
Pragmatic inference
Analogy

Reanalysis: Change in the structure of an
expression of class of expression that does
not involve any immediate or intrinsic
modification of its surface manifestation”
(Langacker 1977: 58).

Serialization: [A simple-minded definition]
An event/state that one language codes as
a simple clause with a single verb, is coded
in another languages as complex clause
with two or more verbs (Givon 1991:137).


Metaphorical processes are processes of
inference across conceptual boundaries, and
are typically referred to in terms of
“mappings” from one domain to another.
They involve transfer from a basic, usually
concrete, to a more abstract domain. (Hopper
and Traugott 1993)

Sweetser (1990) From Etymology to
Pragmatics
Speech and intellectual activity are metaphorically
referred to from the physical domain.
Via metaphorical mappings involved in our cognitive
and linguistic treatment of mental states and speech
acts, we find that certain physical-state and motion
verbs are likely sources for vocabulary of certain
abstract areas of meaning.



The essence resides in the possibility of
establishing connections between entities
which co-occur within a given conceptual
structure.
The entities need not be contiguous in any
spatial sense. (Taylor 1995)



considered to be a type of metonymy.
restricted to the act of reference.
On this broader view, metonymy turns out
to be one of the most fundamental
processes of meaning extension, more
basic, perhaps, even than metaphor. (Taylor
1995)

Speakers operate along the paradigmatic axis
and resort to existing constructions to create
a new construction.
(Hopper and Traugott 1993:56)
NTU 蘇以文


From matrix verb shou to V-shou, there
are two verbs incorporated together,
without apparent pause, meaning that they
are perceived as one word.
shou being adjacent to a verb, it shows
high potential of co-lexicalization and cogrammaticalization.

Accordingly, two verbs has been perceived as
one single simple event. As the two verbs
conjoined, a rebracketing may occur. The
original [V] [shou] has been reanalyzed as [V
shou], as in 講說.
NTU 蘇以文




說是民主
The loss of subject identity leads to less commitment
of the reporter on what is reported, and the speaker,
due to the lack of direct evidence, in turn expresses
his/her doubt or surprise toward the proposition by
the hearsay shuo說
as “a sentence-initial particle for counterexpectation ” (Chang 1998: 117)
In this development, shuo usually cooccurs with the
focus marker 是 shi, indicating the disbelief
(thought) of the speaker about the event heard.

A clear metaphorical mapping involved.
source
target
mapping
Concrete:
speech
Abstract:
thought
NTU 蘇以文
NTU 蘇以文

The semantics of shuo becomes even weaker
and finally can attach to epistemic
connectives such as 除非說，雖然說，如果說，
and so on.
NTU 蘇以文
Wo shi juede shuo zheyang budui
I
is
feel shuo this_way wrong
“I think this is not right.”(我是覺得說(呢)，這樣
不對)
S_ V_
shuo _ Complement
1P _Cog V _ shuo _ Verb Complement


“S + V + shuo + COMP” develops into
1P+ cog+ shuo+ verb comp
via a pragmatic inference.
And, cognitive verbs taking a complement
such as 覺得說，不知道說，and so on,
share a similar paradigm with sentence
final shuo.



我是[覺得][說]，這樣不對
我是[覺得說]，這樣不對
(我是覺得)，[這樣不對說]
◦ 1. Via reanalysis, shuo & the matrix V formed a unit
◦ 2. The unit then undergoes reanalysis: Shuo attaches to
the complement and they become a new synt unit.
◦ 3. Gradually, the absence of cognitive verb is allowed,
and shuo has become a sentence final particle that
conveys the speaker’s attitude.
A.
Sinica Corpus:
Function of shuo
Token
%
A
matrix
verb
Saying verb
1861
93.42
Cognitive verb
22
1.10
Impersonal reportative marker
20
1.00
Sentence-medial complementizer
44
2.21
Sentence-initial
counter-expectation marker
Hypothetical marker
14
0.70
10
0.50
Sentence-final
0
0
Lexicalized usage
21
1.05
1992
100
Modality
%
Dynamic:
94.53
Deontic:
3.21
Epistemic:
2.26
Particle
Total[1]
100
NTU 蘇以文
B.
Spoken Corpus:
Function of shuo
Token
%
A matrix verb
976
63.55
Impersonal reportative marker
16
1.05
Sentence-medial complementizer
407
26.49
Sentence-initial counter-expectation 7
marker
Hypothetical marker
36
0.45
Particle
2
0.13
92
5.98
1536
100
Total
Sentence-final
particle
Lexicalized
usage
2.35
Modality
%
Dynamic:
63.55
Deontic:
27.54
Epistemic
: 8.91
100
NTU 蘇以文
Dynamic:
wo geren yi ceng xiang-guo naxie yijian
“I myself have also thought about those opinions”
(我個人亦曾想過那些意見)

ta weiyi xiang de chulai de jiu shi yilai bieren
“The only thing he could think about is to count on
somebody else”
(他唯一想的出來的，就是倚賴別人)
Deontic:
xiang gaijin que you wuli-gan
“want to make improvement but feel frustrated”
(想改進卻有無力感)

tamen xiang biaoda de jishi budui …
“even what they want to express is wrong”
(她們想表達的即使不對…)

Epistemic:
wo xiang zhe-zhong ren xianzai keneng haishi you
“ I think, this kind of people still exists”
(我想，這種人現在可能還是有)
wo xiang ren you hen-da de qianneng keyi shiying huanjing
“ I think that human beings have huge potential to accustom
themselves to the environment”
(我想，人有很大的潛能可以適應環境）
token
Percentage %
1st singular
254
84.67
1st plural
5
1.67
2nd singular
20
6.67
2nd plural
0
0
3rd singular
0
0
3rd plural
0
0
others
21
7
total
300
100
NTU 蘇以文



他想說—
A grammatical device enabling other minds
to become accessible to direct observation
想說 as CTV (46.1%) (Huang 2002)

The semantic change of xiang is triggered by
◦ the interaction and exclusive co-existence of 1P or
2P subject
◦ epistemic modality
◦ Context

Pragmatic force contributes to the assuming
of new lexical meanings in the grammatical
path of semantic shift

prepositional>textual>expressive

dynamic>deontic>epistemic

Language is the means for the expression of
thought.
Abstract
Concrete
說
Speech
Mapping
NTU 蘇以文
想
Thought


Thought may be prior to speech on a
philosophical plane.
However, as far as the genesis of the
linguistic expressions is concerned, it is only
reasonable to postulate that speech is more
likely a candidate of the source domain in the
speech to thought mapping. (Traugott 1986).


The verb shuo －“a fundamental elements in
a typical speech situation” – is “part of the
basic vocabulary” (Wierzbicka 1989)
Basic vocabulary: the most elementary human
experiences, typically derived from the
physical state, behavior, or immediate
environment of man

Basic concepts, such as the verbal concept “to say,”
are eligible for the process of grammaticalization
because they provide “concrete” reference points for
human orientation (source) that evoke associations
and are therefore exploited to understand the “less
concrete” ones.

Chang (1998):
Taiwanese kong in the initial and final
positions is found in the conversational data,
and she further suggests that shuo, the
Mandarin verb of saying, is used at the
predicate initial or final positions to carry
functions similar to those of kong.

Cheng (1989):
The verb kong “to say” as a clause-initial
marker in Taiwanese has affected Taiwan
Mandarin. He considered Taiwanese kong
as a marker of clause complements.
Work
p.2
Licensing
Author/Source
Humboldt, W. von. 1836.
Über die Verschiedenheit des menschlichen
Sprachbaues und ihren Einfluss auf die geistige
Entwickelung des Menschengeschlechts
(Abhandlungen der Akademie der Wissenschaften
zu Berlin). Berlin: Dümmlers Verlag.
(Reprinted: 1960. Bonn: Dümmlers Verlag; English
translation by P. Health. 1988. On language : the
diversity of human language-structure and its
influence on the mental development of mankind.
Cambridge University Press.)
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Work
p.5
p.6
p.7
Licensing
Author/Source
Huang, Shuanfan. 1982. On the (almost perfect)
identity of speech and thought: Evidence from
Chinese dialects. Paper presented at Fourteenth
International Conference on Sino-Tibetan
Languages and Linguistics.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Vygotsky, L. S. 1962. Thought and Language.
Cambridge, Mass., MIT Press.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Traugott, Elizabeth Closs. 1989. On the rise of
epistemic meanings in English: An example of
subjectification in semantic change. Language
65:31-55.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Work
p.14
p.15
p.16, 20
Licensing
Author/Source
Langacker, Ronald (1977). Syntactic reanalysis.
In Mechanics of Syntactic Change, Charles
N. Li (ed.), 59–139. Austin: University of Texas
Press.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Givon, T. (1991). Serial verbs and the mental
reality of 'event'. In E. C. Traugott & B. Heine (eds),
Approaches to grammaticalization. Vol. 1.
Amsterdam: Benjamins.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Hopper, P. J. & Traugott, E. C. (1993).
Grammaticalization. Cambridge: C.U.P.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Work
p.17
p.18, 19
p.25, 46
Licensing
Author/Source
Sweetser, E. 1990. From etymology to pragmatics:
The mind-as-body metaphor in semantic structure
and semantic change. Cambridge: CUP
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Taylor, John R. 1995. Linguistics Categorization:
Prototypes in Linguistic Theory. Second edition.
New York: Oxford University Press.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Chang, Miao-Hsia. 1998. The discourse functions
of Taiwanese kong in relation to its
grammaticalization. Selected Papers from the
Second International Symposium on Languages in
Taiwan, ed. by Shuanfan Huang, 111-28. Taipei:
Crane.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Work
p.39
p.43
p.44
Licensing
Author/Source
Huang, Shuanfan. 2003. Doubts about
complementation: A functional analysis. Language
and Linguistics 4.2: 429-55.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
"'Conventional' and 'dead' metaphors revisited", in
Wolfgang Paprotté and René Dirven, eds., The
Ubiquity of Metaphor: Metaphor in Language and
Thought, Amsterdam: Benjamins, 17-56.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Wierzbicka, Anna. 1989. Soul and Mind: Linguistic
Evidence for Ethnopsychology and Cultural History.
American Anthropologist 91:41-58.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
Work
p.47
p.11, 21,
24, 27, 29,
33, 34, 38,
42
Licensing
Author/Source
Cheng,Robert L., 1989. Mandarin Function Words
and Their Taiwanese Equivalents. The Crane
Publishing Co.
and used subject to the fair use doctrine of the
Taiwan Copyright Act Article 50 by NTU OCW
NTU 蘇以文