A Study On Syntax And Semantics Of Compound Directional Verbs In Diachronic Chinese

Directional verbs are the verbs which reveal the dynamic locative relationships between motion figure and motion goal. Compound directional verbs comprise objective directional verbs and subjective directional verbs. They are the significant members of directional verbs system in Chinese and underwent a series of complicated changes on syntax and semantics in Chinese history.The first chapter is an introduction of this paper that directional verbs are the special verbs which are not only with less transitivity and dynamic situation on semantics but also between the active verbs and the static verbs on activity. This characteristic makes directional verbs be the predicate head alone as well as the directional complement after the main verbs.Subjective directional verbs Lai and Qv bleach on semantics when they follow the motion verbs as the directional complement; therefore they lose the motion characteristics and merely mean the subjective direction. On the basis of composing the compound directional verbs with objective directional verbs, motion verbs have the references of subjection and objection which enrich the semantics expressions of motion in Chinese further.Compound directional verbs Lai and Qv have bleached so that they can not be followed by the locative objects on syntax. Compound directional verbs is a verb-complement structure in nature and its compound characteristic makes the syntax location free between subjective directional verbs and objective directional verbs which is classified to the overt and covert compound directional verbs.The chapter two introduces the compound directional verbs in the Mid-ancient time s. It discussed the course that Chinese directional verbs had the common syntax-semant ics characteristics and separated from the motion verbs on the diachronic perspective w hen Chinese types took change in mid-ancient times. At that time compound directional verbs had sporadic usage. It was the rudimentary stage of compound directional verbs.The chapter three and four introduce the compound directional verbs in Tang and Five Dynasties. It argued the further mature of subjective directional verbs Qv and the emergence and usage of compound directional complement. At the same time, verb-complement structure was classified into causative moving and auto-moving according to the relationship of semantics structure. Compound directional complements were not abundant and the system of compound directional verbs was not complete. It was the development stage of compound directional verbs.The chapter five introduces the compound directional verbs in Song and Yuan Dynasties. It illustrated the various complicated usages and sentence structures of compound directional verbs in the mature stage, especially in the compound causative moving when the order took changes from VOC to VCO in the Verb-Complement structure, the D in the compound causative moving began to move forward and produced VDOd and transitional VDODd. At that time the structure of compound directional verbs system had completed and they were abundantly used with complicated structures.The chapter six introduces the compound directional verbs in Ming and Qing dynasties. It explained the numerous usages of compound directional verbs in Ming Dynasty and investigated the structures of DdL, VDODd and VDdO on the perspective of comparison. It was the completely mature stage of compound directional verbs. Especially the new structure VDdO represented the accomplishment of directional complement from Song dynasty and determined the final system structure of Chinese directional verbs.The last chapter is the conclusion that directional verbs mean the non-active dynamic situation on semantics and the compound characteristic of compound directional verbs on the form determines the various syntax and grammatical performances in the history and modern Chinese.