漢語嵌入式空主語的指涉研究

Abstract

漢語嵌入式空主語的指涉研究

朱孟美 國立交通大學外國語文學系外國文學與語言學碩士班

本篇論文探討漢語嵌入式空主語的指涉可能性，發現漢語嵌入式空主語 (Mandarin embedded null subject) 的詮釋 (interpretation)，除了如前人文獻記載，可以得到特定指涉 (referential) 對象的意思外，還可以得到泛指 (generic) 的意思。

該發現始於對某些特定句子的觀察。縱然這些句子皆有類似的組成要素，其所內含的嵌入式空主語卻不盡然得到相同的詮釋；在這些句子中，有些句子的嵌入式空主語得到的是特定指涉對象的意思，而有些句子的嵌入式空主語則是得到泛指的意思。在那些嵌入式空主語帶有泛指意思的句子中，我發現其句子中的每個組成要素 (constituent) 皆同等重要；也就是說我們沒有辦法僅依賴句子中某一個組成要素，便足以決定嵌入式空主語的指涉性。

我提出: 在這些帶有嵌入式空主語的句子中，句中各組成要素和彼此結合後，若能帶出某種世界知識 (world knowledge) 或常識 (common sense)，則泛指運符 (generic operator) 就會被誘發出現在句子的左緣 (left-periphery) 結構中，而嵌入式空主語即會被該泛指運符所約束(be bound)，因此得到泛指詮釋；相反地，若句中各要素組成之後的語意無法產生某種世界知識 (world knowledge) 或常識 (common sense)，則泛指運符即不會被誘發，此時，唯一能夠約束 (bind) 或控制 (control) 嵌入式空主語的成分，則為主要子句的主詞 (matrix subject)，嵌入式空主語因此便得到特定指涉的詮釋。語意層面上，透過測試，嵌入式空主語得到泛指的那些句子所展現的泛稱性 (genericity) 傾向於情態 (modalistic) 層面; 同時，這些句子也具有Moltmann (2006) 所提出的泛指模擬 (generic simulation) 特性。

本篇論文最後總結: 泛指運符一旦被誘發，它在CP層 (CP-domain) 中的座落位置，會低於說話者特徵 (speaker feature)。此推論是源於對含有空主語的泛稱性句子 (generic sentences) 與非泛稱性句子 (non-generic sentences)的觀察；他們的空主語詮釋，會因句子本身是主要子句 (main clause) 或是嵌入式子句 (embedded clause) 而有所不同。

The Reference of Mandarin Embedded Null Subjects

Meng-Mei Beth Chu Graduate Institute of Foreign Literatures and Linguistics National Chiao Tung University

ABSTRACT

This thesis investigated the interpretation of Mandarin null subjects in embedded clauses. It found out that, in addition to the referential reading, Mandarin embedded null subjects are allowed to have another interpretation: the generic reading. I started this research with the observation that Mandarin null subjects in embedded clauses are interpreted differently when they appear in similar but slightly different constructions; the subject is referential in some of the constructions, while they bear a generic reading in the others. I notice that every constituent in sentences that generate genericity is equal in the sense that none of them can solely determine whether the sentence containing them is generic or not.

I propose that as long as the constituents in the clause that contains an embedded null subject bring out world knowledge or a common sense, the generic operator will be triggered to appear in the left periphery of the clause. Consequently, the embedded null subject will be interpreted generically since it is bound by the generic operator. On the contrary, if the sentence that contains the embedded null subject does not express world knowledge or a common sense, then the generic operator is not triggered. As a result, the only legitimate constituent that can bind or control the embedded null subject will be the matrix subject, which in turn gives rise to a referential reading. Semantically, for the sentences in which the embedded null subject is interpreted generically, they can be considered examples of modalistic genericity, and are subject to generic simulation proposed by Moltmann (2006).

This thesis ended with the conclusion that the generic operator should be placed lower than the speaker feature in the CP domain, given the fact that null subjects in generic sentences and non-generic ones behave differently when they are present in main clauses and embedded ones.