This paper aims at a closer examination of aspectuality in English. It illustrates the importance of a category which has only scarcely received attention in the study of the English language (cf. Binnick 1991). When it comes to the analysis of situations, the focus is on the verbal category 'tense,' which relates the temporal location of the situation to other points in time. The category of 'aspect' is closely connected to tense, because it provides important information about the internal temporal structure of situations. Nonetheless it is often less familiar to speakers of the English language, referring to, among others, the works of Comrie (1967), Brinton (1988), Binnick (1991) and Kortmann (1991). According to their studies, English lacks formal markers of aspect, whereas the realization of tense in English is quite obvious and thus much
discussed.
1.1 Central Questions
Based on Binnick's (1991) description of 'aspectuality,' it is necessary to clarify this
concept in detail. The central questions for this examination will be:
1. How can aspectuality be inferred from utterances when English lacks aspectual markers?
2. Are there systematic approaches that are concerned with the interaction of 'aspect' and 'Aktionsart' as defined by Comrie (1976) and Vendler (1957)?
3. In which ways do aspectual properties influence or change the semantic meaning of utterances and why?
4. What are the combination options of aspectual perspectives and properties and are there any restrictions consequent on the interaction of different aspectual values?
This paper serves not just to answer these questions, but also tries to differentiate between the various subcategories of aspectuality,' which are in general difficult to distinguish properly. [...]
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
1.1 Central Questions
1.2 Corpus Material
2 Literature Review
2.1 Aspectuality
2.1.1 Aspect
2.1.2 Aktionsart
2.2 Summary
3 The Structure of Situations
3.1 Telicity and aspectual perspectives
3.2 Verb semantics and aspect meaning
4 Results and Explanations
5 Conclusion
6 References
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines the concept of aspectuality in the English language, focusing on the interplay between grammatical aspect and lexical Aktionsart. The primary research goal is to understand how aspectual meaning is inferred in English despite the lack of formal aspectual markers, and how different aspectual values interact to influence the semantic interpretation of utterances.
- Theoretical distinction between grammatical aspect and lexical Aktionsart.
- Analysis of telicity and its influence on aspectual perspective.
- Examination of stative vs. dynamic verb behavior in progressive constructions.
- Evaluation of the "imperfective paradox" within linguistic theory.
- Usage of corpus data to verify aspectual theories in authentic English language examples.
Extract from the Book
3.1 Telicity and aspectual perspectives
How do different aspectual perspectives influence the aspectual meaning of situations? 'States' are permanent situations and 'activities' are characterized as open-ended processes (cf. Verkuyl 1993). Both of them are [-telic] situations. On the contrary, situations, which process with a natural endpoint, are characterized as 'accomplishments'. In addition, situations, which display near-instantaneous situations, are defined as 'achievements'. This particular kind of situation is over as soon as they have begun (ibid.). Thus, 'accomplishments' and 'achievements' are [+telic] situations. This investigation compares [-telic] and [+telic] situations by applying imperfective and perfective meaning as well as aspectual viewpoint. The aim of the analysis is to examine its impact on the meaning of the chosen examples.
(14) a. She believed.
b. ?She was believing.
(15) a. She ran.
b. She was running.
Examples (14) and (15) show the [-telic] verbs believe and run. The concept of Aktionsart classes (cf. section 2.1.2) suggests that sentences (14a) and (14b) display a state and (15a) and (15b) depict an activity.
Chapter Summary
1 Introduction: Introduces the topic of aspectuality as a complex field in linguistics and outlines the central questions regarding English aspectual markers.
2 Literature Review: Provides definitions for key terms such as 'aspect', 'Aktionsart', and 'aspectuality', and discusses scholarly approaches to the internal temporal structure of situations.
3 The Structure of Situations: Analyzes the interplay between telicity, aspectual perspectives, and verb semantics using real-world corpus examples.
4 Results and Explanations: Synthesizes the findings, systematically demonstrating how aspectual viewpoints interact with situational properties and verifying theories like the 'imperfective paradox'.
5 Conclusion: Summarizes the study’s findings and emphasizes the importance of aspectuality research for a deeper understanding of English temporal expression.
6 References: Lists the academic literature and corpora used throughout the research.
Keywords
Aspectuality, Aspect, Aktionsart, Tense, Telicity, Progressive Aspect, Imperfective Aspect, Perfective Aspect, Verb Semantics, Situation Types, Imperfective Paradox, Habitual Aspect, Corpus Linguistics, Stative Verbs, Dynamic Verbs
Frequently Asked Questions
What is this research paper primarily about?
The paper explores the concept of aspectuality in English, investigating how aspectual meaning is encoded even in the absence of explicit formal grammatical markers.
What are the core thematic areas?
The core themes include the distinction between grammatical aspect and lexical Aktionsart, the classification of situation types (Vendlerian classes), and the semantic interaction between these categories.
What is the primary research question?
The central question is how aspectuality can be inferred from utterances when English lacks formal aspectual markers, and how aspectual properties change the semantic meaning of sentences.
Which scientific methodology is applied?
The author uses a literature-based theoretical framework combined with a qualitative analysis of authentic usage examples extracted from the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA).
What does the main body cover?
The main body focuses on the analysis of verb semantics, specifically comparing stative and dynamic verbs, and examining the effects of perfective and imperfective perspectives on different situation types.
What are the key descriptive terms for this work?
Key terms characterizing the work are aspectuality, Aktionsart, telicity, the imperfective paradox, and progressive aspect usage.
Why is the "imperfective paradox" significant to this study?
It is significant because it illustrates the asymmetry between imperfective and perfective aspect in telic situations, serving as a critical point of analysis for understanding entailment in English verbs.
How does the paper handle stative verbs?
The paper examines how typically stative verbs can shift their semantic meaning to become dynamic, thereby allowing them to occur in progressive constructions, while identifying purely stative verbs that resist this shift.
- Quote paper
- Janine Klinge (Author), 2011, Aspectuality in English - Temporal Perspectives and Properties, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/179844
