Abstract
Research on the syntax and semantics of aspect is aimed to (i) determine which aspectual elements are universal and which are not and (ii) ascertain how and where in the grammar aspectual information is represented. The discussion in this chapter is framed within the above overarching goals. The chapter presents results on the syntax of viewpoint aspect in Mandarin Chinese, showing evidence of possibly more than one aspectual projection in Chinese syntax. It discusses works on situation aspect in Mandarin, and looks at the possibility that Mandarin does not exhibit the full range of aspectual situation types. How evidence from Mandarin may contribute to the debate on whether situation aspectual information is to be represented in the lexicon or in syntax, is also discussed. It further considers how temporal information is expressed in Mandarin, which lacks (obligatory) morphological marking of tense.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The Handbook of Chinese Linguistics |
| Publisher | Wiley |
| Pages | 126-155 |
| Number of pages | 30 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9781118584552 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780470655344 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Feb 25 2014 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Keywords
- Mandarin chinese
- Situation aspect
- Syntax
- Tense
- Viewpoint aspect