英语存在句研究二题——确指性与一致  

Two Issues of the English Existential:Definiteness and Agreement

作　　者：戴曼纯[1] 崔刚[2] 

机构地区：[1]北京外国语大学语言研究所100089 [2]清华大学外语系100871

出　　处：《外语与外语教学》2000年第9期24-27,32,共5页Foreign Languages and Their Teaching

摘　　要：主要论述了存在句的两个基本问题：副主语的确指性和动词的一致。大量例句表明，存在句除了可有泛指的副主语外，还可以有确指性副主语，但是，确指受句法、语篇、情景诸多因素的限制。一致现象也很复杂。Sobin的病毒理论认为，体现指示语一中心语一致的单数一致是经济的、常规的推导，复数一致则是受病毒规则(优势结构形式)影响的结果。笔者认为，确指性和一致涉及句法及非句法因素，诸如语篇、情景等。This paper discusses two controversial issues of the English existential: definiteness and agreement. It is well supported that the associate subject of the English existential can be definite or indefinite and that this is constrained by such factors as syntactic features, discoursal and situational features. The issue of agreement between the subject and the verb is equally complex. Sobin's Virus Theory assumes that the singular specifier_head agreement is the normal economical derivation whereas the plural agreement results from the effect of Virus Rules (prestige constructions). The paper concludes that definiteness and agreement, as affected by the above_mentioned syntactic and non_syntactic factors, can not be explained systematically and comprehensively from one single perspective.

关 键 词：存在句 确指性 一致 

分 类 号：H314.3[语言文字—英语]