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Identifier

000463481

Title

Argument Structure across Grammatical Categories : Existential, Possessive, and Copular constructions / by Anna Kampanarou.

Alternative Title

Ορισματική δομή στις γραμματικές κατηγορίες : δομές ύπαρξης, κτήσης και κατηγότησης

Author

Καμπανάρου, Άννα

Thesis advisor

Αναγνωστοπούλου Έλενα

Reviewer

Αλεξιάδου Άρτεμις
Lechner Winfried
Κάππα Ιωάννα
Μιχιελιουδάκης Δημήτρης
Οικονόμου Δέσποινα
Τσακάλη Παρασκευή

Abstract

The present thesis investigates how Argument Structure is realized in different grammatical categories by examining existential and possessive constructions, as well as structures that involve a copular element in general. Through the study of Greek data and their comparison with data from other languages, it is observed that existential and possessive constructions sentences are semantically related as they express a relationship between a Figure and a Ground. This similarity is attributed to the fact that they share a common structural element, a small preposition (p), as their predicative head that introduces the relationship between the Figure and the Ground. However, the structural representation of the two arguments within the predication layer is not uniform. Moreover, the fact that the constructions under examination involve a verbal copula allows for assuming further differentiation at the level of verbal structure. Specifically, it is argued that existential and possessive structures also vary in terms of licensing external arguments through a Voice Phrase. It becomes evident from the above that existential and possessive sentences constitute a suitable domain for studying Argument Structure across the grammatical categories of prepositions and verbs, which serves the investigation of the broader question posed by this thesis. To substantiate the underlying hypotheses, this dissertation provides a detailed description of the distribution of the relevant structures in Greek, thus filling a gap in the existing literature. Its conclusions reconcile the two main lines of research, which assume unified syntax behind existential and possessive constructions on the one hand and the existence of multiple structural schemes for each type of sentence on the other.

Language

English

Subject

Argument structure of prepositions

Copular argument structure

Copulas and transitivity

Cross-linguistic typology of possession

Existentials in Greek

Figure-ground relationships in grammar

Possessives in Greek

Prepositions as predicative heads

Syntax of existential constructions